Jiangshan Fengwuzhi

Chapter 371 is incomplete
Before we knew it, it was winter.

As the first snow fell, the bells of the capital city rang out incessantly, announcing the passing of Emperor Rui.

The snow fell heavily, covering the entire city in white.

In the midst of his busy schedule, Pei Nian, then serving as the Northern Garrison Commander of Kaiping Prefecture, avoided the crowd and walked alone through a small alley not too far from the government office into a residence.

The residence is small, located in a prime location in the capital where land is extremely valuable, offering a quiet retreat amidst the bustling city.

However, the courtyard was very ordinary, far inferior to Chu Danqing's former residence.

The doors were unlocked, and Pei Nian walked into the main room, pushed the door open, and saw that the table was piled with books, scattered haphazardly.

She then went over and tidied up.

The scroll was a record of local customs and products, with various annotations and notes tucked inside, some of which looked very old.

This was the complete set of "Records of Local Customs" that had been seized from the Yue Kingdom's palace years ago, originally belonging to Shi Xuandao. Pei Nian, relying on his power, moved it out of the Zhaowen Hall for Gu Jingnian to peruse.

It was clear that Gu Jingnian had stayed up very late again last night; the lamp oil on the table had already burned out.

After rearranging the scattered scrolls in order, Pei Nian saw Gu Jingnian's handwriting. The handwriting was messy and the content was obscure, but it must still be related to Hongchi and Jie.

After passing the screen, one could see Gu Jingnian still asleep on the couch.

Pei Niansui walked over, sat down on the edge of the couch, and asked, "It's afternoon, would you like to eat something before you sleep?"

Hearing the noise, Gu Jingnian took her hand, seemingly too lazy to get up.

Pei Nian then said, "Shen Jichi is dead."

"is it?"

Gu Jingnian was not surprised.

Pei Nian asked, "You've been seeing Shen Lingshu quite frequently lately, haven't you?"

"I've happened to run into them a few times."

"Am I too busy, unlike her who can spend more time with you?"

"That's not it."

"So you're very interested in Shen Jichi, and you've been investigating him lately?"

"I do have some doubts."

"You won't tell me?"

Gu Jingnian said, "It's not that I can't say, but it's more likely that I'm overthinking it."

"You suspect he's not dead?"

“Hmm.” Gu Jingnian said, “For example, from a certain moment on, what we see of Shen Jichi is just a shadow, while he has actually escaped to the East Sea.”

Will there be any impact?

"Could it be that Zhongzhou can no longer use his supernatural abilities? No matter how capable he is, he can only show off his abilities within the realm."

Pei Nian suddenly asked, "So, you're investigating all this... because you also want to go to the inner realm?"

"No, I'm just bored."

"Your dad would be furious if he heard that."

Pei Nian simply said that without specifying how much Gu Beiming needed Gu Jingnian at the moment.

The news of Emperor Rui's death could not be concealed, and Gu Beiming, who had proclaimed himself regent, relied heavily on Gu Jingnian to intimidate the court officials. For example, when the Yan Kingdom delegation arrived in Zhuojing, the chief envoy, Hu Jingnan, repeatedly requested to meet with Gu Jingnian.

Gu Beiming often asked Pei Nian to persuade Gu Jingnian to cheer up, but Pei Nian knew that Gu Jingnian was not unwilling to cheer up, but just too lazy to go out and pretend to be a filial son and a loyal minister.

As for her, she has many things to do. For example, in order to help Pei Wugou and Gu Beiming seize power, she plans to assassinate Prince Wei Qi, who is eyeing the throne.

Strangely, Pei Nian would sometimes worry, even when she was busy, that Gu Jingnian would suddenly disappear one day.

Nowadays, it's very difficult for others to find Gu Jingnian, but she is the only one who can still see him. However, he gives off an increasingly strong feeling that he might disappear at any moment.

This is why Pei Nian, despite being extremely busy today, still insisted on coming to see him.

"Are you really not looking for a way to get into the realm?" Pei Nian asked again.

"Don't go."

Gu Jingnian answered, and as if to reassure Pei Nian, he added, "I won't read those volumes of 'Records of Local Customs' anymore. Send them back to Zhaowen Hall."

"Okay, won't you get bored?"

"I'll learn to play chess," Gu Jingnian said casually. "I've been a chess piece my whole life, so I might as well be a chess player."

When Pei Nian took those volumes of "Records of Local Customs" away from Gu Jingnian, she felt inexplicably relieved.

It seemed that if this were the case, Gu Jingnian would not leave Zhongzhou.

--------

Frosty Maple Mountain.

The bell tolls softly at Chongjing Academy.

In a secluded grove behind the Sutra Repository, Gu Jingnian and Song Zhang were playing chess at a stone table.

"Your mind isn't on the game."

Song Zhang casually pointed a finger down and said somewhat listlessly.

He could tell that this disciple's sudden visit to play chess with him was for a specific purpose.

Sure enough, Gu Jingnian said, "After Shen Jichi died, Xue Juju came to see you, sir?"

"As expected of Pei Zhenfu, the commander of Kaiping Division."

After Song Zhang chuckled, he casually made this sarcastic remark.

Gu Jingnian didn't mind the teasing and laughed, "So, sir, you're admitting it?"

“There’s nothing I can’t admit,” Song Zhang said. “Shen Jichi entrusted me to take good care of his family.”

Gu Jingnian asked, "Why are you entrusting this to you, sir?"

Song Zhang smiled and said, "Perhaps it's because I'm trustworthy."

"Forgive my bluntness, but since you have neither power nor military strength, why would Shen Jichi believe that you can take good care of his family?"

"Now you also think that power is the most important thing?"

"That's not what I meant, but...where did you take Xue Juju, sir?"

"I cannot tell you about this matter."

Gu Jingnian nodded and stopped asking about Xue Juju's whereabouts.

He picked up a chess piece, frowned and thought for a moment before placing it down, and began to speak methodically.

“In the past, I was very curious about why you were so knowledgeable. I even asked the old man who swept the floor in the library. He said that reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. You may have seen it with your own eyes. I was puzzled. How could you travel to so many places when the sea and the land are so far apart? Later we all felt that you were too young to do that.”

Gu Jingnian had just made his move when Song Zhang immediately followed suit.

Clearly, this game posed no challenge for him.

But Gu Jingnian stopped playing chess and started talking to himself.

“At the time, I thought that what the teacher knew must have come from books, such as ‘Fengwu Zhi’. Until recently, I read through ‘Fengwu Zhi’ and its annotations, and also collected all the books about the customs of the Yi and Hai regions, but I still had never seen some of the content that the teacher casually mentioned during his lectures.”

Song Zhang asked, "Then why do you think so?" "Perhaps you were just making it up?"

"Haha."

Gu Jingnian said, "That's possible. You did indeed travel to the foreign lands."

"It's thousands of miles away, how will I return?"

"Then... could it be that the place you went to wasn't the Yihai, but rather its phantom in Zhongzhou, which is the boundary?"

Song Zhang stopped laughing, gave Gu Jingnian a deep look, and asked, "How did you know?"

“Hongchi is from Chongjing Academy, and his master and alchemy all originated from there. How could I not care about the academy?”

"But I am just a mortal, I don't know how to transmit my image, how can I enter the realm?"

Gu Jingnian held a chess piece between his fingers, tapping the chessboard lightly as he pondered, but not the game itself.

After a long while, he slowly uttered two words.

"gap."

Song Zhang smiled again, his face showing an expression that indicated he was a promising student.

Gu Jingnian said, “Boundaries are inherently formless. A distance of ten thousand miles can be reached in an instant. Why are they divided into the Zhuojing Boundary and the Four Pillars Mountain Boundary? Presumably, it is because the gap in the Zhuojing Boundary is in Zhuojing, and the gap in the Four Pillars Mountain Boundary is in Four Pillars Mountain. Pei Nian and my elder sister have both entered the boundary, which shows that mortals can also enter the boundary through the gap.”

"It seems you've put a lot of effort into studying these things," Song Zhang asked. "What do you want? To enter the realm?"

"No."

"Then why?"

Gu Jingnian said, "I want to do things thoroughly so that there are no hidden worries in Zhongzhou."

"Do you think there are hidden worries in Zhongzhou?"

"Yes."

Gu Jingnian finally made his move.

Looking at the chessboard, Song Zhang showed a thoughtful expression for the first time, though he wasn't actually thinking about the game itself.

After a long silence, he did not make a move, but murmured, "Chongjing Academy was founded by the sage more than a thousand years ago. Its purpose was actually to protect Hongchi. Apart from the guardians designated by the academy, everyone who knows about Hongchi wants to use it to cultivate supernatural abilities, except for two people... the sage and you."

"I had no choice."

"You're asking about the gap; if not to enter the realm, do you aspire to become a saint?"

"Not for sainthood, but for peace of mind."

"it is good."

Song Zhang seemed to have decided to tell Gu Jingnian something, and asked, "Do you know what Hongchi is?"

"I don't know."

"It is the gap between Zhongzhou and Yihai. To be more precise, it is the viscous liquid used to fill the gap. It never dries up and is inexhaustible. No one or anything from Yihai can pass through it to enter Zhongzhou. Therefore, once it is tainted by blood, it will absorb spiritual energy. The spiritual energy of Zhongzhou is first transported to the Four Realms, and the Four Realms do indeed have gaps, which even mortals can enter."

Gu Jingnian said, "Shen Jichi is indeed not dead. He escaped into the East Sea Realm, and you sent Xue Juju through the gap into the realm to reunite with him?"

Song Zhang did not answer the question, but continued, "Although you are now using the Hongchi to cleanse the spiritual energy of the Central Plains, the spiritual energy will still continuously overflow from the gap in the Four Pillars Mountain. In a few years or decades, it will inevitably return to its original state. This may be the hidden worry you feel, but it is not a bad thing for you. The Hongchi absorbs spiritual energy, not your essence and blood. When that day comes, you will be able to regain your supernatural abilities... As for the long term, the gap will widen, and even lead to the invasion of the barbarian sea people and the destruction of the Central Plains, that is beyond my concern."

Having said that, he casually placed a piece.

"you lose."

This game of chess was really not interesting. Song Zhang waved his hand and saw his guest out, deciding never to play chess with Gu Jingnian again.

"I've told you everything you wanted to know. Let's stop here for today."

Gu Jingnian, however, did not stand up and asked, "How can we completely plug all the gaps?"

"This is something even the ancient sages could not accomplish," Song Zhang exclaimed.

"There is a way?"

"Yes, and it sounds very simple; it can be summarized in one sentence."

"Sir, please speak."

“We only need to divert water from Hongchi to fill it,” Song Zhang said. “But the water in Hongchi cannot be scooped up. The only solution is to dig a canal to connect Hongchi with Sizhu Mountain. The difficulty of this task lies not only in the manpower and resources required, but also in the fact that Zhongzhou must be unified.”

Gu Jingnian stared at the chessboard on the stone table, remaining silent for a long time, his hand still holding a chess piece.

"There's no need to continue. I've already said you've lost," Song Zhang said. "Besides, you don't want to be a saint, so there's no point in asking any more questions. Go back."

After saying that, he stood up and prepared to leave, but seeing that Gu Jingnian had not left, he said a few more words.

"If you wish to roam freely across the world with unparalleled abilities, you can seek out the gap to enter the realm; if you wish to enjoy worldly riches, go back to your father; if you truly intend to live a carefree and leisurely life, then let go of all these things and let nothing trouble your heart..."

"Snapped."

Gu Jingnian placed the chess piece at the center of the chessboard, the Tianyuan position.

Song Zhang was slightly taken aback and said, "That's not how you play chess."

"If I were to personally participate in this, would you think that's acceptable?"

"you……"

Song Zhang was stunned for a moment before he understood Gu Jingnian's intentions and said, "What? You finally saved your sister, and now you want to save even more people?"

"I dare not say I have lofty ambitions, I just want to do things thoroughly."

"I thought you didn't want to be a pawn anymore."

"I suddenly understand," Gu Jingnian said. "The world is a game board, and who isn't a pawn?"

Song Zhang smiled knowingly and said, "Yes, it's not shameful to be a pawn, it's more shameful to lose."

"What does winning or losing matter? It's just a game of chess."

"Oh? You've become much more carefree."

"I've come to terms with it."

Gu Jingnian stood up, bowed to Song Zhang, and walked down the mountain, his figure exuding a sense of freedom and ease.

Leaving Chongjing Academy and standing under the snow-covered branches, looking up at the vast expanse of snow-covered earth and sky, one can't help but feel an urge to leap into the air and soar through the sky.

I wonder if that day will ever come in my lifetime?
He chuckled to himself with amusement and walked toward the difficult mountain path after the snow.

Step by step, we slowly descended the mountain.

He is still the same boy who studied here back then, his appearance hasn't changed much, but perhaps one day, with his order, countless people will start construction and dig a river, leading to all corners of the world.

Perhaps, at least he had this ambition in his heart.

The world is vast, yet we are but a game of chess; though our bodies are insignificant, we can mend the cracks in the sky.

With these thoughts in mind, Gu Jingnian, who could no longer fly, descended Frost Maple Mountain and walked alone through the wilderness on the outskirts of the city.

In the dead of winter, amidst turbulent times, the countryside was deserted, with only the clear sound of falling snow audible.

The wind was biting cold. Gu Jingnian walked slowly, but he kept walking, eventually leaving a long trail of footprints in the snow.

When the ice melts and the snow thaws next year, the scenery of Shuangfeng Mountain will remain the same, only the flags in Zhuojing City will be changed and new scenes will be added.

(End of the book)

(End of this chapter)