The Great Qing Dynasty was divided into nine provinces, with the capital at the center, forming a protective encirclement.
Jingzhou was located in the south, adjacent to the Flame Country. Due to its proximity to the sea, the people here had an additional means of livelihood compared to other places. Even the scent along the docks was distinct, as seafood was transported to other regions via the Wei River.
As the ship docked, shouts and calls filled the air. Hua Zhi stood at the bow, her skirt fluttering in the wind, making her appear even more striking. Yet, her expression and demeanor were so aloof that they kept others at a distance. Though many watched her openly or covertly, only one person attempted to approach her—but this time, he couldn’t reach her side.
The Sixth Prince signaled to his guards with a glance, and the two guards stepped forward simultaneously, forming a wall that blocked Jiang Huanran.
Jiang Huanran stood on tiptoe and called out ahead, "Miss! Miss..."
Hua Zhi glanced back indifferently, her gaze toward Jiang Huanran as if he were a stranger. His smile froze on his face, and he suddenly felt as though he had disturbed Hua Zhi—and the person he had disturbed clearly did not appreciate it.
Shaoyao, who was being held close by Hua Zhi, also turned her head. Her veiled hat obscured her fierce glare. If she weren’t worried about disrupting Hua Hua’s plans, she wouldn’t have let this young man off so easily. Just wait until they returned to the capital!
"Let’s go, we’ll find an inn to settle in first," Hua Zhi said, stepping off the ship ahead of the others. Her beauty would have stood out even in Yangzhou, a city known for its beauties, let alone in Jingzhou, where both men and women were several shades darker than those inland. As she walked, she drew countless gazes but seemed completely unaware.
There was a carriage service right at the dock, and Xu Ying immediately went to negotiate, returning shortly with two carriages.
Although Hua Zhi hadn’t wanted to bring too many people, their party still numbered nine. Aside from Bao Xia and Xu Ying, whom she had brought along, there were also two guards from the Sixth Prince and two arranged by Gu Yanxi.
Hua Zhi had intended to have Xu Ying rent a few more horses, but the four guards shook their heads in unison. Unlike the tall, sturdy horses of the north, Jingzhou used short-legged ponies, which appeared far inferior in their eyes.
Even the best carriage from the service was uncomfortable for Hua Zhi. She lifted the curtain and looked out at the bustling crowds. The area seemed relatively prosperous, but it fell far short of her expectations.
She had been mistaken earlier. Even though Jingzhou was by the sea, the Great Qing Dynasty was not as formidable as the Ming Dynasty. In comparison, it could even be described as isolated, having never established contact with any overseas nations. They didn’t even know that beyond the sea lived people who looked different from them, with different civilizations.
To them, the sea was merely a means of survival. They harvested various seafood from the ocean and sold it inland for silver, while enduring the minor and major disasters caused by the sea’s fury during certain seasons. That was the entirety of the sea’s significance to them.
No foreign enemies, no pirates, no invasions—Hua Zhi sincerely hoped it would always remain this way.
"It’s so much hotter here than in the capital," Shaoyao remarked, taking off her hat, her face already smudged with dirt.
Hua Zhi turned to her, using a handkerchief to wipe her sweat, and said, "I had someone prepare lighter clothes for you. Change into them once we reach the inn."Shaoyao clung to Hua Zhi's arm, nuzzling against it. She didn't tell Hua Hua that she had once come here with Yan Ge, and their arrival had turned this place into a river of blood.
"Hua Hua, how long will we stay here?"
"It depends on how smoothly things go. If all goes well, we could wrap up the negotiations in a few days. Why?"
Shaoyao grinned with a sly glint in her eyes. "Hehe, I was thinking about how long Yan Ge would have to wait in the capital."
Hua Zhi poked her forehead and also thought of that man. It had already been ten days; by her calculations, he should have been on his return journey.
But reality was not as she imagined. Gu Yanxi was still in Yuzhou. When the Seven Constellation Bureau first received the news, the Seven Stars Sect had two thousand members. By the time he arrived in Yuzhou, their numbers had surpassed four thousand—doubling in just a few days. The severity of the situation far exceeded expectations.
At this moment, he blended into the crowd with an utterly ordinary face, bowing his head respectfully like everyone else. However, he subtly turned his body, observing everything on the high platform from the corner of his eye.
The so-called leader of the Seven Stars Sect wore a white robe, her hair loosely tied at the back. When she wasn't smiling, she carried an air of divine indifference toward all living beings. Yet when she smiled, her holiness made people willing to offer their hearts to her. Gu Yanxi had followed her for three days, watching her perform three rituals, and his perception of the Seven Stars Sect kept shifting.
Before coming, he had assumed this was another fraudulent scheme—just another way to swindle silver from common folk. But this person was different. She didn't take a single copper coin from the people; instead, she bestowed so-called holy water. After witnessing a sickly person drink the holy water and recover, he had someone deliver a sample to Yu Lao overnight.
Watching the sect's followers multiply rapidly, he restrained himself from acting. Such a grand spectacle surely had ulterior motives, and he hadn't yet uncovered this person's motivations. A danger like this couldn't be suppressed—it would become a calamity.
"Master." Chen Qing hurried in. "We lost her again."
This was the third time they had lost track of her. Gu Yanxi lightly tapped his fingertip with a silver hairpin. "Still no trace of her origins?"
"No." Chen Qing gritted his teeth inwardly. This was the first time the Seven Constellation Bureau couldn't trace someone's background. Could she have sprung from a crack in a stone? Even if she had, the Bureau should have dug up that stone by now!
"Any movement from Yuan Shifang?"
"My men are watching him. Everything appears normal."
Gu Yanxi raised an eyebrow. "Start from him. Investigate."
Chen Qing was taken aback. "But he shows no abnormalities..."
"Yuan Shifang has the humblest origins among the nine supervisors, but his capabilities are the strongest among them. Would a capable supervisor be unaware of such a sect emerging in his territory? He knows, yet he's done nothing. That might be normal for others, but for him—it means there's something foul at play."
Chen Qing accepted the lesson and immediately turned to leave.
"Wait."
Chen Qing turned back around.
Gu Yanxi lowered his head in thought for a moment. "Keep the surveillance on him unchanged. Send unfamiliar faces to operate externally. Make sure you stay hidden."
Chen Qing was startled. "There's a mole? Didn't we eliminate them? Since when has the Seven Constellation Bureau become a sieve?""Just in case." Gu Yanxi looked down at the gleaming silver hairpin, sensing that his movements hadn't escaped certain people's notice, just like that time in the Flame Country. Yet if this truly involved those individuals, it didn't make sense - what benefit would they gain from establishing such a cult? History showed that no one who attempted to overthrow a dynasty through such means ever met a good end.
Moreover, the methods employed by this cult leader didn't resemble those of ordinary charlatans. Instead, they bore similarity to the techniques used by those Celestial Masters. The lesson of the Crown Prince remained fresh, and the incident hadn't faded from memory - they shouldn't have forgotten so quickly.
Gu Yanxi's eyes turned dangerous. If the Celestial Masters were stirring up trouble again, this time merely driving them away wouldn't suffice.
But the Celestial Masters alone couldn't create waves of this magnitude.
PS: Having some heart muscle issues with medication-induced drowsiness, sleeping through most of the day. Will update once daily these two days - keeping track of the owed chapters!
OpenNovel