Walking by the Abyss on Thin Ice

Chapter 190 – Aristocratic Family Governance

The saint was in the middle, Su Yun and Zuo Songyan stood beside the sickbed, and Xue Qingfu sat up from the bed as Dong physician came forward to treat him.

Su Yun looked at Dong physician and suddenly smiled, "If the Dao Saint hadn't encountered the saint, Dong physician would probably have died, right?"

Xue Qingfu said, "Although the God King intended to kill him, he was injured and only captured him. After I knew that you were the master of Tongtian Tower, I ordered someone to inform the God King not to kill Dong physician."

He smiled weakly, "I had the idea of saving face, but I didn't expect to save my life. If the God King really killed Dong physician, I would have died because of my serious injuries without anyone to save me."

Su Yun nodded, "The saint is merciful. After the saint's injuries are better, can Dong physician come back?"

Xue Qingfu said solemnly, "Dong physician has saved my life, and I dare not keep him here."

Su Yun stood up, "I won't disturb the saint's rest and recovery."

Zuo Songyan also stood up and said, "You drove away the Hun Tuo Khan and kept the Shuobei safe, so I didn't break my promise and brought the Chao Tian Que to you."

He moved his mind slightly, and a huge Chao Tian Que suddenly appeared, bursting the ward where Xue Qingfu was.

Zuo Songyan walked out of the saint's residence with Su Yun without looking back, and said arrogantly, "Xue Saint, if you want to be a saint, then be one for your whole life! If you change, don't blame me for being against you!"

After leaving the saint's residence, he showed a painful expression, apparently reluctant to part with the Chao Tian Que.

Su Yun asked, "Can I still study at the Wen Chang Academy if I am not an envoy?"

The two walked in the small town of the saint, where there was no one around, and the residents of the town were commanding various armies at the moment. Zuo Songyan shook his head and said, "Who said you are not an envoy? In a few days, Di Ping will definitely grant you the status of envoy! You wait for the edict to summon Xue Saint back to the Eastern Capital and appoint you as the envoy, and the edict to send you to the Eastern Capital will definitely come to Shuofang at the same time!"

Su Yun was puzzled, "Is it because I made great contributions in this turmoil?"

Zuo Songyan was stunned, laughed loudly, laughed so hard that he almost fell into the river, quickly grabbed an old willow tree, and still couldn't help laughing, tears streaming down his face.

Su Yun waited quietly.

After catching his breath, Zuo Songyan finally stopped laughing, wiped away his tears, and said, "Su Shizi, do you think your contribution is significant?"

Without waiting for Su Yun to answer, he said, "Indeed, your contribution is significant. You overturned the original situation, overturned the table, and forced the seven major families to rebel ahead of time. If it weren't for your actions, the various forces in Shuofang would have continued to negotiate for a few days until the situation deteriorated, until the disaster ghosts assimilated more people, and caused a situation where the people were not living. You saved countless people in Shuobei! But you have no credit! Not even a little bit of credit!"Su Yun was even more puzzled.

"Besides us, who knows the contributions you made? Who knows that you sealed off Shuofang City and saved the common people? Who knows that you attracted the disaster gray monsters and killed them all?"

Zuo Songyan shook his head. "No one knows! Others only know that it was Xue Saint who eliminated the seven major families, quelled the rebellion, and even intercepted the army of the Huntao Khan, forcing them to retreat back to the grassland!"

He stood by the river, looking at the water, and sneered, "The ones who deserve credit in this battle are the Marquis of Shuofang, the Ye, Peng, Li and other families! Even if they fought poorly and lost their armor, they still deserve credit because they are the local tyrants! If the emperor wants to rule Shuofang, he has to use them! Moreover, I am an old friend of the emperor, so he has to give me some credit. You came from the countryside and made a great contribution, but when it comes to rewards, what credit do you have?"

Su Yun stood by his side, plucked a few willow leaves, and threw them into the river one by one, saying, "But just now, the attendant said that the emperor will appoint me as a special envoy and order me to go to the capital."

Zuo Songyan kicked a small stone into the river and laughed, "You came from the countryside and have no share in the credit, even Ye Luo has a bigger contribution than you. But you are powerful, you are the head of the Tongtian Tower, and the emperor has to win you over, so even if you don't do anything in this disaster, the emperor still has to reward you with a big credit."

His mockery on his face was even worse, "Your real contribution is even greater than Xue Saint's, but because you are a country bumpkin, you have no credit when it comes to rewards. But you have another identity as the head of the Tongtian Tower, so the emperor still has to reward you. You tell me, is this absurd?"

Su Yun looked at the ripples on the river surface and after a moment, suddenly said, "Is this how the local tyrants rule?"

"This is how the local tyrants rule!"

Although Zuo Songyan's body was small, standing beside Su Yun, he was half a head shorter than him, but he stood up straight with a breathtaking momentum: "I just can't stand this kind of rule by the local tyrants, but I'm helpless."

He sighed and whispered, "I hope that people from humble backgrounds can rise up, everyone can give full play to their talents, learn useful things in school, and use what they have learned after leaving school. I also hope that everyone can be rewarded according to their contributions. Those who are talented should be promoted without looking at their family background or the face of the powerful. But..."

He fell silent, turned and walked away, sighing from afar, "I'm helpless..."

"I have a lot of strength and ability, but I'm helpless!" Zuo Songyan roared like an old wolf, full of helplessness.

Su Yun watched him go far away.The next morning, Su Yun, Zuo Songyan, and others saw Qiu Shuijing off. They sent him to the post station, which was severely damaged during the battle, but people cleared the rubble and barely allowed a candle dragon to pass through.

"Wait."

Qiu Shuijing turned around and said, "I disobeyed the emperor's order and returned. The emperor will wait for me for half a month, but he needs me, so he won't blame me. You don't need to worry about my safety. This time I'm going to the Eastern Capital to study under Sage Xue and start wielding power."

Zuo Songyan spat and sneered, "The next time you look in the mirror, you will find that you have finally become the person you hate the most."

Qiu Shuijing laughed heartily, turned around, and came to the candle dragon carriage. Suddenly, he stopped and turned his head, saying to Su Yun, "Lord Su, if I were you, I wouldn't go to the Eastern Capital."

Su Yun bowed and said, "Please enlighten me, sir."

"I dare not," Qiu Shuijing turned around, held his elbows, and said seriously, "We almost had the fate of master and disciple. Although you are now a respected chamberlain, I have been foolish for several years and will act as an elder to speak from my heart."

The candle dragon carriage was about to set sail. The old soldiers at the post station had already untied the dragon's beard from the wooden stake, and the candle dragon shook its huge head.

Qiu Shuijing said concisely, "This time, I will go to the Eastern Capital and take advantage of the fact that the emperor has to use me. I will change the world with a bold and drastic approach. Sage Xue is also coming to the Eastern Capital with great momentum, and he has been planning for decades. This trip is his time to be crowned! The emperor is greedy for power and wants to live forever. He will support me to resist Sage Xue, but at the same time, he will suppress me and Sage Xue. Therefore, the struggle in the Eastern Capital will be extremely fierce and dangerous!"

The candle dragon roared, and the old soldiers at the post station urged the passengers to board the carriage.

Qiu Shuijing climbed up the rope ladder and said to Su Yun below, "It's extremely dangerous to go to the Eastern Capital. Once we leave Shaofang, we'll be entering a dragon's den! I can't bear to see you go to the Eastern Capital and die! You have a better future and don't need to waste your life in the Eastern Capital!"

Su Yun followed the candle dragon carriage and asked loudly, "Then why are you going to the Eastern Capital to die, sir?"

Qiu Shuijing was stunned, laughed and said, "The world! The world is righteousness! I have to go where righteousness is!"

"Moo..."

The candle dragon let out a long roar, and its speed became faster and faster, rushing out of the post station and towards the city.

"I am named Shuijing, and I am like water and a mirror in my actions, but when I met you, it was like meeting a mirror that could reflect my life!"

Qiu Shuijing waved his hand from afar and said loudly, "Now that we part, I don't know when we will meet again. I will give you a mirror and hope that when you see it, you will remember our friendship!"

Su Yun stopped, and a stream of light flew towards him.

He raised his hand to catch it, and the stream of light stopped. It was a piece of glass mirror with a scene inside. Only a full moon hung in the sky in the mirror.Zuo Songyan came to his side, glanced at the mirror, and smiled, "It seems that Su Shizi wants to treat him as a teacher, but unfortunately, Qiu Shuijing is too rigid and does things by the book. He knows that he is not as high as the head of Tongtian Tower, so he dares not take you as his disciple."

Su Yun shook his head and said, "I don't think so. I think Mr. Shuijing is afraid to have any involvement with me on this dangerous journey, for fear of implicating me."

Zuo Songyan thought for a moment and smiled, "It seems to make sense."

The two walked side by side out of the Shaofang post station, waiting for the mountain carriage. Su Yun pondered for a moment and asked, "Left Prime Minister, I have limited knowledge. Can you please enlighten me?"

Zuo Songyan waved to a mountain carriage and said before Su Yun could ask his question, "Go to the capital."

Su Yun was stunned and asked, "Left Prime Minister, can you explain the reason?"

The mountain carriage stopped, and the two climbed onto the second floor of a small building. Several customers on the second floor saw them and looked frightened, quickly leaving the building.

The two sat down.

Zuo Songyan said, "The capital is a mix of dragons and snakes, the center of power in Yuanshuo. Any ambitious man must go to the capital. You also need to go there, or you won't see the prosperity of the world, the decay of the court, and the righteous and ambitious people fighting for the fate of the country. So, if I were you, I would go to the capital!"

Su Yun was excited.

Zuo Songyan looked out the window with a deep gaze and said, "But the capital is indeed dangerous. I'm afraid you will be smoothed out by the capital and become a round and fat egg like the big shots in the capital."

Su Yun was stunned, not knowing what he meant.

Zuo Songyan continued, "The longer you stay in the capital, the more slick you will become. I want you to remain who you are now, not another slippery Xue Qingfu. Whether to go to the capital or not is up to you to decide."

Su Yun fell silent, still struggling to decide.

In the following days, Su Yun's injuries gradually healed. He occasionally took out the mirror that Qiu Shuijing gave him to check on himself. The mirror had nothing special, except that the moon in the mirror rose and fell just like the real moon.

Because of the turmoil in the city, there were many injuries and illnesses. Su Yun and Chi Xiaoyao opened a medicine shop and helped treat the injuries of the common people.

However, some strange symptoms appeared in the city. Some people seemed to have contracted the calamity dust, with bone texture appearing on their skin and constant coughing, showing a tendency to transform into calamity dust monsters.

Chi Xiaoyao stepped up her treatment and even invited medical students and scholars from the academy to help, but the disease could not be cured. Instead, the calamity dust disease gradually spread throughout the city.

One day, Su Yun was busy when he suddenly heard a voice say, "Is Doctor Dong here?"Su Yun heard the voice and couldn't help but feel both surprised and delighted. He smiled and said, "Idle Cloud Taoist, you've finally come back! Left Protector has been sending people to look for you everywhere, searching for you for a long time..."

He turned around and saw Idle Cloud Taoist looking disheveled, carrying a sickly old Taoist on his back.

Su Yun was surprised and quickly brought over a soft stool. Idle Cloud Taoist placed the old Taoist on the stool and asked, "Is Doctor Dong not here?"

"He's at Saint's Residence, treating Saint Xue's injury."

Su Yun looked the old Taoist up and down. The old Taoist smiled and said, "You haven't learned Heavenly Eyes, so you can't tell what kind of injury I have."

Zhaizhu: "You haven't learned Heavenly Eyes, so you can't tell what kind of injury I have. It's only with the support of monthly tickets, recommendations, and your love that my injury can be healed!"