The First Lackey Under The Empress

East of Binhai Road, adjacent to the East Sea, stands a verdant mountain reaching into the clouds.

At the foot of the Green Mountain lies the "Martial Emperor City," expanded from a small town over hundreds of years.

On the winding official road, Chai Keqiao, returning from a long journey, strode forward.

His hair was disheveled, and he was covered in dust.

Chai Keqiao stopped at the city gate, raised his face, tanned red and black by the sun, and suddenly grinned, revealing his white teeth:

“I’m back!”

There was no grand welcome, and no one even paid attention.

It wasn't until Chai Keqiao stepped into the city, sat down in a familiar tavern, had a meal, dropped a silver ingot, and left in a dashing manner that those martial artists from all over the Jianghu who had come to the foot of the Green Mountain for pilgrimage heard the news and were disappointed to find that the city lord's direct disciple had already left.

Chai Keqiao passed through the city, arrived at the foot of the Green Mountain, and began to climb along the rugged and steep mountain road.

Along the way, he could still see martial artists trying to climb the mountain.

However, as he climbed higher, the number of people he encountered decreased.

On the Green Mountain, every few hundred steps of the long mountain road, there was a man-made platform.

On the platforms, disciples of the Martial Emperor City lineage practiced, oblivious to their surroundings.

Some young men were practicing horse stance and throwing punches, sweating profusely and teetering.

Some young men sat cross-legged in meditation, propping their chins and pondering, and after a long time, they would suddenly jump up, pick up a branch from the ground and stab it several times in the air with a "whoosh" sound, then drop it, sit cross-legged on the ground and continue to ponder with their heads in their hands.

Some middle-aged men were shirtless, hitting giant trees again and again, and each time, yellowish leaves fell like goose feather snow.

Each level higher on the Green Mountain had a new landscape, Chai Keqiao walked non-stop, and no one even glanced at him.

The Green Mountain of Martial Emperor City, which only existed in legends in the Jianghu, seemed to be completely undefended.

Unknowingly, Chai Keqiao walked into the clouds, he clearly felt that there were gazes cast from the clouds, and then moved away.

He knew that it was the senior brothers guarding the mountain, and after confirming his identity, they ignored him.

"It's really indifferent, they won't even come out to say hello."

Chai Keqiao sighed, and when he walked out of the clouds, he had already arrived at the top of the mountain.

Looking down from this height, the entire Martial Emperor City was shrouded in a sea of clouds, and the mushroom-shaped giant pillars of cloud qi made people feel as small as ants.

At the end of the line of sight was a cliff extending from the mountain towards the sea.

"Whirring—"

The sea breeze blew in his face, sweeping away the fatigue of the journey.

Chai Keqiao respectfully walked near the cliff and looked at the figure sitting cross-legged with his back to him, watching the East Sea.

"Master, disciple is back."

The person sitting alone on the cliff was as his name suggested, with a tall and burly frame, also dressed in coarse linen clothes, with rough and messy hair mixed with black and white, tied casually behind his head with a ribbon.

Wu Xiankui had a face of a middle-aged man of about fifty years old, and his appearance was not very special, except for a mark between his eyebrows that was like a fiery red jujube in color and size.

This martial arts grandmaster, the only true martial artist among the four "celestial beings" in the world today, opened his eyelids, did not turn his head, and asked calmly:

"Why are you back so late?"

Chai Keqiao scratched his head embarrassedly:

"This disciple failed to fight the Little Monk of Tianhai on this trip, which is a great regret, so I detoured to find someone to spar with on the way back, so I was a little late."

Wu Xiankui said: "I heard from the people at the foot of the mountain that the Da Yu's offering stole the limelight this time, surnamed..."

"Surnamed Zhao, Zhao Du'an," Chai Keqiao thought for a while, and said, "This disciple did not expect that this person would win the championship. However, it is said that he relied on the Tai'a Sword."

Wu Xiankui said indifferently:

"Victory is victory, why care about relying on fists and weapons? It seems that the imperial family's offerings have successors. How is that female emperor?"

Chai Keqiao thought for a while and said:

"From what this disciple has heard and seen, that female emperor is extremely diligent in political affairs, and seems to want to be a wise ruler."

Wu Xiankui said disappointedly:

"People are like mayflies born in the world, and their lifespan and strength are sometimes exhausted. I thought that the imperial family had produced another exceptionally talented descendant, but they squandered their time on mundane things, what a pity."

Chai Keqiao blinked and said, "That hundred-year battle..."

Wu Xiankui closed his eyes and said, "We must go all out."

In the past, the "Martial God" and Martial Emperor City, two inheritances opened up by the Da Yu imperial family, competed with each other, imitating the Buddhist and Taoist competitions, and agreed to a gambling battle once every hundred years.

However, unlike the rules of Buddhism and Taoism, which send young disciples to fight, the gambling battle is fought by their respective peak combat power.

In the last century, the one who went to the appointment on behalf of the imperial family was not the emperor, but Hai Chunlin, the number one offering of the inner court who was at his peak.

In that battle, Hai Chunlin suffered internal injuries, and his realm regressed instead of advancing, falling from the threshold of a pseudo-celestial being back to the realm of the world.

This century, only Xu Zhenguan can go to the appointment.

Now that the Buddhist and Taoist competition has ended, the gambling battle between Martial Emperor City and the Da Yu imperial family is not far away.

Chai Keqiao smiled:

"That female emperor has not entered the real celestial being, so she is not Master's opponent."

Wu Xiankui said:

"But it may not be so, if she can advance to the celestial being before the gambling battle, and with the blessing of the emperor's dragon qi, it will be a different world."

Chai Keqiao wondered: "Didn't Master say that she devoted herself to political affairs and delayed her practice? Can she go further?"

Wu Xiankui suddenly said:

"In the past, the Da Yu Taizu was indeed amazingly talented, not only was his own martial arts powerful, adjacent to a human immortal, but he also created a unique method of advancement for emperors, gathering the emperor's dragon qi and adding it to his body with luck, but first, if he can perform the Feng Chan ceremony at Mount Luo, he may not be able to go further."

Feng Chan ceremony at Mount Luo?

Chai Keqiao was stunned, and wanted to ask something else, but he saw the number one martial arts grandmaster sitting alone on the cliff waving his hand:

"Go, next, retreat in the mountain, after traveling outside, you should also step into the realm of the world."

……

……

One evening, Linfeng Road.

On the official road to the capital.

In a leeward mountain depression, carriages stopped.

Song Juren, who was seven feet tall, over fifty years old, and dressed as a scholar, jumped out of the car and began to loudly direct his family servants to clear the campsite for the night.

Then, this Juren master, who had interacted with Zhao Du'an in Taicang Prefecture that day, walked almost diligently to a simple but special carriage and said respectfully:

"Sir, it's getting late, we can't catch up with the village ahead, so we have to spend the night here."

The twenty-year-old book boy driving the car lifted the curtain, and a middle-aged man wearing a Confucian robe, a cloak, a square hat, and a beautiful beard under his jaw stepped out of the car.

The moment the middle-aged man appeared, a group of scholars of different ages who came from behind saluted in unison: "Sir!"

Such momentum attracted the attention of strangers who were also preparing to set up camp nearby, and they couldn't help but inquire.

After learning that this was "Yunfu Dao's Master Zhengyang", they were all greatly surprised.

Song Juren was not surprised by this, he raised his head and looked behind the carriage.

He saw that behind Master Zhengyang's carriage, there were dozens of other carriages, many of which were carts pulled by donkeys or oxen, and several people could ride in one large cart.

This did not include those who followed on horseback, and those scholars who were trying to follow on foot and had not yet fallen behind.

There were so many people, as many as hundreds.

Song Juren learned that his teacher Master Zhengyang was going north and passing through Linfeng some days after Zhao Du'an left.

As a "disciple of Master Zhengyang", Song Juren immediately welcomed him with a grand fanfare, and only then did he learn that Master Zhengyang had come from Yunfu Dao and was planning to enter the capital this time.

This man, known as the "Great Yu's foremost recluse," held a reputation in literary circles almost on par with Grand Tutor Dong Xuan. In the South, his influence was even greater, vaguely earning him the title of "Nanyang in the South, Dong in the North." The Master Zhengyang in Yunfu Prefecture was almost revered as a contemporary sage.

For many years, he had guarded his elder brother's tomb, writing books to organize and elucidate the doctrines of past Confucian sages. Even the imperial examination graders would consult his annotations to some extent.

It could be said that he was almost universally recognized throughout the Great Yu as the sole candidate to succeed Dong Xuan as the next leading figure of Confucianism.

Although he lived in seclusion in Yunfu, he attracted scholars from all over to pay homage. Occasionally, he would lecture, and his words, passed down through his disciples, were enough to reach the imperial court.

Master Zhengyang, who had not descended the mountain a single step in ten years of guarding the tomb, chose the capital as his first stop after leaving the mountain.

As soon as the news came out, it attracted the attention of countless scholars.

When Zhengyang emerged from Yunfu Prefecture, he only had a book boy by his side.

By the time he met with the scholar Song, he already had dozens of followers.

Scholar Song, fortunate enough to witness this grand event, could not resist the temptation of having his name recorded in history. Abandoning his family business, he also followed his teacher northward.

Now, with the capital in sight, he already had hundreds of followers behind him.

Along the way, countless literati and scholars watched and paid attention. He could imagine what kind of sensation would be caused when the group entered the capital.

"Let's all rest," Master Zhengyang cupped his hands to the crowd, and everyone returned a disciple's salute.

Then, everyone began to set up camp in an extremely orderly manner. Many scholars rolled up their sleeves and went to pick up dead branches and fallen leaves from nearby, gathering them into piles.

When the sky darkened, the evening glow dissipated, and night arrived, the sky was covered with stars.

In this mountain hollow, clusters of bonfires had been lit, centered around the middle-aged man.

These disciples, who had once listened to Zhengyang's lectures and were scattered all over the place, now followed their teacher and gathered together, taking out dry food from their packages to boil water and eat.

Scholar Song, because he had family wealth, brought servants and did not have to do chores himself, so he could serve his benefactor.

He held the heated meal and came to the carriage, passing through clusters of bonfires, and said to the middle-aged man sitting cross-legged on the ground, meditating:

"Sir, please have some food."

Master Zhengyang, wearing a Confucian robe inside and a cloak outside, with a beautiful beard, raised his eyelids and glanced at this disciple, not refusing his kindness.

He reached out and took the warm earthenware pot, picked up chopsticks in his hand, but did not rush to eat, but said:

"In a few days, we should enter the capital. You should disperse after sending me here."

Scholar Song was shocked: "Sir, you..."

Zhengyang, who was about the same age as Scholar Song but had a demeanor that surpassed him by a generation, smiled and said:

"After traveling a thousand miles, there will eventually be a parting. This trip to the capital, entrusted by Prince Mu, is to rectify the proper learning and debate with that woman emperor who crows like a hen at dawn about the rites and laws.

As such, it is a great disrespect. The capital is a dragon's pool and a tiger's den to me. You don't have to be implicated by me. Sending me here is already heartfelt. I will walk the road ahead myself."

As soon as these words came out, not only Scholar Song, but also a group of scholars sitting nearby became anxious.

They all expressed their willingness to follow him to the death and would never leave.

Zhengyang shook his head helplessly, but did not say anything more.

Seeing the atmosphere was dull, Scholar Song said: "Sir, please tell us more about the study of principles."

The eyes of the surrounding people lit up. This was knowledge they never tired of hearing.

Zhengyang did not refuse. Although he was in a mountain hollow and wilderness, and bonfires gathered, it did not delay the work of lecturing:

"What do you want to ask?"

One person said: "Sir, please talk more about the investigation of things and the extension of knowledge. I still don't quite understand. The 'Great Learning' says that learning should follow the order of investigating things, extending knowledge, making intentions sincere, rectifying the heart, cultivating oneself, regulating the family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world.

The latter is easy to understand, but why must one first investigate things and extend knowledge before one can make intentions sincere and rectify the heart? In the classics of the former sages, the investigation of things and the extension of knowledge only appear this once, without further explanation. How should it be interpreted?"

Another person next to him said:

"The teacher has explained this many times. Everything in the world has its principles. If we cannot exhaust its principles, we cannot fully know it. Therefore, we scholars should exhaust the principles of all things and explore the roots of things. In this way, with accumulation over time, we can suddenly become enlightened, master everything, and be close to a sage."

The former person said confusedly:

"But I see that the predecessor Zheng Gong said that 'ge' means 'to come', and 'wu' is like things. Yingda's theory also has similar views, good things come to those who do good deeds, and bad things also come to those who do evil deeds...'

"It seems to say that if my heart is good, good will come close to me, and if my heart is evil, evil will gather towards me, just like a gentleman is close to a gentleman, and a villain is close to a villain... It is different from what the teacher said, and I don't understand."

For a time, a group of disciples quarreled with each other.

Scholar Song was helpless and coughed lightly: "Let's ask the teacher."

Zhengyang met the eager gazes of the disciples, but remained silent for a moment, not answering immediately.

The four words 'investigation of things and extension of knowledge' can be said to be a major case in the Confucianism of the Great Yu. Confucian scholars of past dynasties have different views and tried to restore the true meaning of the sages.

Zhengyang annotated the classics and spent many years studying the scriptures before he had the above-mentioned view of "deeply exploring the principles."

If Zhao Du'an studied his learning, he could probably taste a little bit of the flavor of "preserving the principles of heaven and extinguishing human desires."

However, Zhengyang has been shaking himself in the past two years, always feeling that his righteousness and learning are not solid enough, but he has no new direction.

At this moment, facing the disciples' questions, just as he was about to open his mouth to answer, he suddenly heard the sound of horses neighing.

Everyone in the mountain hollow turned their heads to look, only to see that there was another team of carriages coming on the dark official road, but the direction was from the east.

The carriage was low-key and luxurious, far from being comparable to a group of scholars.

Soon.

Servants in the carriage were carrying lanterns, escorting several figures who looked like dignitaries. Before the people arrived, the sound came first:

"Haha, is the Master Zhengyang of Yunfu ahead?"

Zhengyang and others got up, and with the help of the bonfire, they saw three figures walking in the midst of a group of servants.

The leader was a gorgeously dressed young man in his thirties, with red lips and white teeth, but his eyes revealed an uncomfortable taste.

Beside the young man, an old man with hands that passed his knees followed closely.

Walking like an ape, if there were practitioners present, they could see at a glance that this old man was always in a posture where he could suddenly rise up and hurt people.

Beside the master and servant, one step behind, was a woman in her thirties.

Her temples were adorned with white jade pearls, she had a face of national prosperity and people's peace, wearing a dark green flower silk embroidered horse skirt, and a shawl wrapped around her upper body, but she lowered her eyebrows and eyes as she walked.

"May I ask your honorable names?" Master Zhengyang frowned.

A servant carrying a lantern said with arrogance:

"This is the Prince Heng's heir apparent from Qingzhou. This time, he is going to the capital with the head of the Xiao family of Donghu, Madam Xiao. He heard that Master Zhengyang was here, so he took a detour to meet him."

Prince Heng's heir?

The number one female widow of the Yu Kingdom from the Xiao family of Donghu?

Master Zhengyang, who also has the title of "foremost recluse," was stunned, with a strange expression.

......

......

Let's pull the time back.

Capital, Zhao family.

After Zhao Du'an returned from the yamen, he casually fooled his stepmother and sister with "busy with official duties last night," and then couldn't wait to return to his bedroom.

Closing the door, from the palm-sized "Taixu Painting Scroll," he poured out the leaf-like treasure that was as white as jade and scattered with dots of light.

— —

Plot forecast:

That's right, Yangming's philosophy of the mind is about to be shamelessly plagiarized by the protagonist again.