Firefly Journey

Chapter 278 Trying to Scoop the Moon from the Mud (3)

As the delegation, weary from their journey, steadily made their way to Herokke, their emperor sat comfortably in the center of the palace's rear garden, leisurely playing chess.

He holds the black, but no one holds the white.

There was someone in that position more than a decade ago, but they are no longer in this world.

Even though there was no one playing against him and he controlled both pieces, he seemed to be having a great time, pondering the game with an air of seriousness.

In the tranquil royal garden, the silence was broken by the footsteps of a palace maid.

Emperor Zhuang opened his mouth and asked, "Have you brought the person here?"

The palace servant's voice was clearly flustered: "N-no, Your Majesty, that person said that Yahu Xiaozhu is too far from the palace and doesn't want to come..."

Emperor Zhuang frowned, and the palace servants were so frightened that they quickly knelt down, causing Emperor Zhuang to frown even more deeply.

Just then, another person arrived.

Emperor Zhuang had heard the footsteps of the person behind him for decades, so he didn't need to guess who it was.

"You may leave," the old man said to the palace servant.

The palace attendant looked towards the chessboard, a hint of hesitation on his face: "This..."

"Don't worry, nothing will happen," Zhao Zheng said with absolute certainty.

"Under..."

Emperor Zhuang raised his head and said to the palace servants, "You just leave when the Left Chancellor tells you to? Or do you want to stay and dine with me?"

"Yes! Your subject takes his leave." The palace servant left without looking back, though he was actually moving faster than he was running.

In the Great Chu, anyone who receives a state salary refers to themselves as "臣" (chen, subject) before the emperor, regardless of their official rank. When facing officials of higher rank, they only need to refer to themselves as "下官" (xiaguan, lower official).

"Left Prime Minister, why have you come in person?" Emperor Zhuang stood up and made a gesture to help him up.

Zhao Zheng did not refuse, saying, "It is not a good thing for Your Majesty to take your anger out on the palace servants when you cannot invite a great sage."

Emperor Zhuang laughed angrily: "Teacher, which eye of yours saw me venting my anger on him? He knelt down on his own, don't wrongly accuse someone!"

"But you didn't wake him up either."

"I'm playing chess."

Zhao Zheng sat down in the white piece's position, glanced at the chessboard, and said leisurely, "No wonder, you have an exceptional memory. You've kept that little girl's moves in your mind all this time."

"Without her, I'm afraid our Great Chu wouldn't have needed to rush into choosing a consort for the Crown Prince; His Majesty could have handled those matters himself."

Empress Jingmu was short and slender; even after marrying Emperor Zhuang, she still appeared to be just a young girl. Zhao Zheng's memory of the Chu Empress was also not tall, but rather quite interesting.

It was precisely because of her poor health that she passed away so young. After the funeral, countless ministers jointly submitted a memorial, requesting His Majesty the Emperor to appoint another Empress in order to maintain order in the court.

On that day, in the Hall of Apocalypse, the sound of wind breaking came from outside the door, and a sword shattered the dragon desk, and the ministers fell silent.

Since then, even though there were three thousand beauties in the Great Chu Palace, there has never been a new empress to this day. In fact, the annual selection of concubines to enter the palace has been abolished.

The beauties in the palace now are all old and faded; they were personally selected by Empress Jingmu before her death.

While others were unaware, Zhao Zheng knew perfectly well. Years ago, Emperor Zhuang had issued an imperial edict secretly dismissing the concubines and providing them with travel expenses.

Those who remain are simply pessimistic about their future after leaving the palace. After all, staying in the palace means being pampered and waited on, so wouldn't it be a waste if they couldn't find a good husband outside?

Of course, there were also a few who had a strange sense of self-confidence, believing that Emperor Zhuang would eventually come to his senses. As a result, he could only live out his days alone, and no one wanted him even if he wanted to leave the palace.

After all, who would marry an old woman who is both old and extravagant? Wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?

Emperor Zhuang replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "But she has been to this world, so your assumption is invalid."

Zhao Zheng sighed, stood up and said, "Let's go, I'll take you to see him."

"Teacher, is he really that amazing?" Emperor Zhuang had always been skeptical of Zhao Zheng's previous claims.

For many years, Zhao Zheng had been busy with government affairs, teaching the father and son, and had no time to take on students and former officials, especially a foreigner.

Emperor Zhuang felt that the old man was attracted by the man's status. After all, the person he was going to recommend was a close friend of the "Great Teacher of Virtue," and his knowledge and ability could not be lacking.

But he wasn't the Great Teacher himself. If it were Cassius, he wouldn't mind going to his residence to see him, let alone Emperor Zhuang holding his horse's stirrups.

Just like Lin Yuanran's complaints, Cassius's title of "succubus" was well-deserved. Their teacher was famous throughout the continent because of his real talent and learning, not because he sought fame and fortune.

Zhao Zheng said, "Judging from His Majesty's expression, it seems he looks down on him."

"No," Emperor Zhuang said. "It's just a bit of a pity. It would have been better if the Great Teacher of Virtue had come."

Zhao Zheng couldn't bear to look: "You've actually picked someone?"

Emperor Zhuang remained silent, and the two left the garden.

The flowers were in full bloom, as if someone was standing inside, waving at them.

……

……

After several days of trekking, the Chu delegation entered the Kolumbutz Mountains.

This was Lin Yuanran's second time passing through this place. He had already seen it once when he came to the State of Chu before. Even though it wasn't his first time, he was still awestruck by the majestic peaks.

In the original world, Lin Yuanran spent his days either at school or at home, and was basically paralyzed at home during holidays, rarely going out.

When faced with magnificent natural scenery, it's only natural to feel emotional and moved.

The convoy traveled along a winding, ancient mountain path. Originally, there was no path here, but as more people walked on it, it became a path.

The Kolumbutz Mountains do not belong to any country; only a few orc tribes live around them, and the continuous mountain range is their shared hunting ground.

Caravans came and went, carrying both travelers and merchants. The orc tribe welcomed them because they could trade for supplies and even weapons that were unavailable in the tribe.

The long mountain road was rugged and bumpy. Taking advantage of the shift change, Lin Yuanran ran out to drive the horse himself, wanting to experience the awe-inspiring power of nature more clearly.

The convoy traveled slowly, and in the distance, Lin Yuanran saw a sunken basin.

Unlike the lush mountains and forests, there was sparse grass and trees there, and not even the hoofbeats of magical beasts could be heard.

Lin Yuanran was curious, so he called back the driver and teleported to the roof of Du Guangting's carriage:

"Lord Du, do you know what's going on over there?"

Du Guangting was already used to his elusive nature. He lifted the carriage curtain to take a look, then took out the map to compare.

“That’s… the ruins of the ‘Meat Grinder Under the Giant Peak’.” Du Guangting was somewhat lost in thought.

For a native of Chu, that was a special place.

Lin Yuanran returned to the carriage and gave an order: "The mountain road is rugged, slow down."

The delegation comprised a diverse group of members, including veterans who had fought in that battle. The convoy slowly traversed the towering mountains, the entire delegation enveloped in a solemn atmosphere.

Many years ago, the State of Chu and the Empire of Debasa fought at the foot of Mount Kolumbutz. Many years later, the two countries are about to form a marriage alliance. As time goes by, many things have changed.

……

Dozens of miles away from the Chu delegation, an old man packed bottles and jars into his backpack, glanced at the place where he had lived for many years, and finally took a step forward.