Stranger Danger

“So, you took control of the Chaos Heaven Brigand and grew your powerbase to take revenge against Fang Muyun,” Feng Qingyou said.

“It’s one of my backup plans, yes,” Ye Qing answered.

“I’m sorry for disrupting your plans, Joyless,” Feng Qingyou apologized. “Alas, I need Mount Qi for my own plans, so I cannot surrender them to you.”

“It’s fine. It was something I came up with on a whim to begin with. It’s not important.”

It was a half-truth. It was true that the idea had occurred to him as a whim, but to say it wasn’t important to his plans would be a total lie.

In his original plan, Chen Wuxin would take control of the Chaos Heaven Brigand and expand his influence in secret. After he became a Grandmaster, he would travel to Mount Qi and attempt to take control of the entire place in one fell swoop. With Mount Qi and Xue Beikun’s forces under his control, he would finally have the beginnings of a powerbase that could go up against Fang Zhiyong and Fang Muyun.

Unfortunately, Feng Qingyou stole his prize before he could even put his plan into action.

If she was anyone else, he would have fought for his prize one way or another. But since it was Feng Qingyou, he had no choice but to compromise.

He was compromising not because he was in love with her, but because she was a friend and the one who saved his life. Either one of these reasons was a reason enough to make a compromise.

Sure, his plans to take revenge against Fang Muyun had suffered a definite setback because of this, but so what? Was he completely helpless just because his plan A was no more?

There are countless ways to reach one’s destination. If one way doesn’t work, then choose another. It was that simple.

“Thank you.”

Feng Qingyou smiled. It was warm and soothing like spring.

“That said, aren’t you going to compensate me for my life? I am making a compromise here,” Ye Qing joked.

“True. What kind of compensation do you desire?” Feng Qingyou asked.

“Hmm, let me think…”

Ye Qing rubbed his chin and pretended to think for a moment before giving his answer, “I got it! Uncle Feng told me that you have a homebrew called Three Lives Wine that is one of the best wines he had ever tasted! Why don’t you give me a jar?”

“Okay! But not now,” Feng Qingyou replied.

“Why not?” Ye Qing looked puzzled.

Feng Qingyou explained, “Generally speaking, wine tastes better and richer with age, but the Three Lives Wine is the opposite. It tastes best when it has just finished brewing, and it will teach you what it means that the past should remain in the dust, the present should be lived without regrets, and the future is full of hope.”

“Such is the meaning the Three Lives Wine hopes to convey, and why leaving it to age would only ruin it. If you truly wish to taste the Three Lives Wine, then I urge you to wait until the beginning of the next spring. I shall treat you to the wine then.”

“That sounds fantastic. I would love to!” Ye Qing said happily.

Feng Qingyou said, “By the way, I have something I’d like to ask of you as well.”

“What is it? Speak freely,” Ye Qing replied.

“I’d like you to keep today’s matter a secret. Is that okay?” Feng Qingyou asked.

“And here I thought it was something serious. Of course it’s okay. Not a word will leave my lips.” Ye Qing smiled.

“Thank you, Joyless.” Feng Qingyou beamed. “As thanks, I will tell you a piece of intel.”

“What’s it about?” Ye Qing asked curiously.

“It relates to Fang Muyun and Chu Wangsun,” Feng Qingyou answered.

“Fang Muyun?” Ye Qing didn’t really care about the intel until he heard the name “Fang Muyun”. He immediately placed his full, undivided attention on Feng Qingyou.

Instead of giving away the intel immediately, Feng Qingyou asked, “Do you know about the Four Seas Summit?”

“The Four Seas Summit?” Ye Qing shook his head and answered frankly, “No, I do not.”

“The Four Seas Summon originates from a joint treaty between Yan, Chu, Qi and Wei nine hundred years ago. It was a treaty to stand together and fight against the Strangers of the four seas regardless of their differences.”

Feng Qingyou explained, “Nine hundred years ago, You had just fallen, and the four countries were busy fighting against each other for the spoils. During this time, the Strangers of the four seas led by Kun Sage and Dragon Lord invaded humanity and attempted to conquer it all.”

“The four seas came ferociously, and neither country was able to respond adequately due to the ongoing turmoil. In just the span of months, they were able to occupy hundreds of kilometers of land, destroy thousands upon thousands of settlements, and turn thousands and thousands of kilometers of fertile ground into wastelands. Countless people perished and lost their homes as a result.”

“Realizing that this cannot continue, the four countries agreed to a ceasefire and signed the Four Seas Treaty at the Eastern Shore. Together, they fought back against the Strangers of the four seas for three years and successfully sealed Kun Sage in the Guixu, suppressed Dragon Lord in the Deep Abyss, and pushed the Strangers back to the deep sea.”

“In order to commemorate their forefathers’ sacrifices and the successful repulsion of the Strangers of the four seas, Yan, Chu, Qi and Wei decided to form the Four Seas Summit and build the city known as Four Seas at the Eastern Shore. Every three years on the September ninth, the four countries would meet at Four Seas to hold the Four Seas Summit to commemorate their forefathers, show off humanity’s strength, and intimidate the Strangers of the four seas[1].”

“I see.” Ye Qing nodded in understanding. “So, what does it have to do with Fang Muyun?”

“The Four Seas Summit has been held for nine hundred years, and it is one of the most celebrated events among the four nations. You may also view it as a summit of all wulin under the heavens.”

Feng Qingyou continued, “When it is time, the four countries would dispatch their young, promising geniuses to attend the Four Seas Summit. They would be trading pointers with each other, coordinating joint projects and so on during the summit.”

“As of late, the Strangers of the four seas were starting to grow restless again. The countries know this because the frequency of their harassment has gone up as of late. In order to cower the Strangers to submission, Yan, Chu, Qi and Wei have unanimously decided to dispatch their strongest, brightest stars to attend the summit. They plan to show off their national power and the strength of humanity.”

“According to my sources, Fang Muyun and Chu Wangsun are the two geniuses that Chu has chosen to dispatch this time.”

“I know that Chu is declining as of late, but Fang Muyun? There has to be a better candidate, hasn’t there?” Ye Qing quipped subconsciously.

“It looks like your perception of Fang Muyun is somewhat skewed.” Feng Qingyou shot Ye Qing a look of amusement. “You didn’t actually think that Fang Muyun is a helpless scholar, did you?”

“Of course not!” Ye Qing rubbed his nose. He was aware that Fang Muyun was no weak scholar who couldn’t even wrestle a chicken. According to Fugong, Fang Muyun wasn’t just an exceptionally intelligent and shrewd schemer, but also a martial genius in his own right. It was just that his deepest impression of Fang Muyun was the devious, traceless machinations that nearly ended his life at Tian Yong, so he subconsciously overlooked the scholar’s martial attainment.

“Fang Muyun is a man of profound learning and unparalleled wisdom, cunning, skill and power. The current emperor of Chu once said in front of his court officials that Fang Muyun was a one-of-a-kind talent whose civil acumen could rule a country and prosper the people, and military prowess could take down strongholds, destroy cities, and pacify the Four Seas. He claimed that Fang Muyun is worth more than an army of tens of thousands, and that Chu was blessed to have him.”

Feng Qingyou seemed to admire Fang Muyun quite a bit. “If we’re looking at talent alone, Fang Muyun is actually better than even Chu Wangsun. However, those who are wise are often plagued by a mountain of work, and Fang Muyun did not have the luxury to focus on martial arts only. The number of times he fought publicly are few and far between either. That is why most people knew of Chu Wangsun, but not Mister Farseeing.”

“According to my sources, Fang Muyun is now a Trueman, or a Confucian Gentleman to be exact.”

“Fang Muyun’s a Trueman already?” Ye Qing exclaimed in astonishment, though he quickly came to terms with it.

The term Feng Qingyou used to describe Fang Muyun—Confucian Gentleman—was how Confucian scholars addressed their own Truemen and Grandmasters.

To a Confucian, a scholar who became a Trueman was definitely a square gentleman who had found the truth in the books and attained perfection. Hence, they were known as gentlemen. In terms of position and power, they were similar to a True Lord of Taoism, or an Arhat or Bodhisattva of Buddhism.

“Fang Muyun and Chu Wangsun spend most of their time in the capital of Chu, and I shouldn’t need to tell you how heavily guarded it is. Trying to kill Fang Muyun in the Chu capital is akin to climbing the heavens as an ordinary person. Even if you somehow did the impossible, it is extremely unlikely that you will be able to escape safely.”

Feng Qingyou said, “Therefore, the only time you may attempt to assassinate Fang Muyun and Chu Wangsun is when they are away from the Chu capital. This Four Seas summit is an excellent opportunity, don’t you think?”

1. Did I look into the future and specifically avoided capitalizing four seas since the very beginning so I can differentiate between the city and the seas? Let’s pretend I did and it wasn’t a total coincidence. Yeah. ☜

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