Misty Rain of the Old Times

At the dinner table, the little girl couldn't contain her excitement and chattered, "Master, Master, it rained last night! It rained so hard! I heard lots of people cheering and banging drums!"

The worry between her brows vanished, replaced by a face full of joy, as if she were happier than if she had found silver.

Chen Xuanxuan took a big bite of food and laughed, "I said a few days ago that it might rain at any time, and sure enough, it did! Roujia was worrying too much. Can you relax now?"

There's no need to explain too much. What does it matter if she can guess the truth or not? As long as she's happy, that's all that matters.

Nodding, the little girl said happily, "Master is really amazing, he could even foresee this. I know that I was not in a good mood a few days ago, and it even affected you all, but when I think about the crops withering in the fields and many people losing their way to live, I feel very sad. When I was a child, my grandfather barely managed to raise me by farming."

Those who haven't personally experienced hardship can't truly empathize. Chen Xuan understood her feelings and smiled, saying, "The past is the past, don't think about it so much. Life is better now, there's no need to force yourself to suffer. Just live happily."

"Yes, I know, I won't do it again," the little girl nodded obediently.

Apart from the clueless little girl, almost everyone present knew that last night's heavy rain was Chen Xuan's doing; everything was understood without being said.

Then Chen Xuan looked at the little princess and said, "Wife, do you remember that Yan Quan from that day? I used some tricks to keep him circling the county town for days. Today his master came looking for him, and I dealt with him... That's roughly the situation. Wife, you're smarter than me, so help me analyze this. Am I overthinking things?"

Chen Xuan described the process in detail, without hiding anything, except for omitting the unnecessary step of artificial rainmaking.

Regarding Tingyin's arrival, he felt it necessary to hear his wife's opinion. After all, the little princess grew up in the palace and had been exposed to human nature and scheming, which Chen Xuan considered far superior to her.

After hearing his words, the little princess pondered seriously and said, "Husband, do you mean that the woman named Tingyin might have been sent by the Black Diagram Society to deliberately approach you?"

The little princess of the Black Diagram Society was naturally familiar with it. That organization was always stirring up trouble and was a target of every dynasty's attention and crackdown. Any member discovered would be captured and eliminated without any effort. However, the organization was too mysterious and deeply hidden, making it difficult to find clues. Occasionally, a member would be exposed, and once he realized that he could not escape, he would choose to end his own life, just like the one Chen Xuan had encountered.

No one knows the specific members of that organization; they may be hiding among the people or even within the imperial court.

What's baffling is that this organization seems to be insane, as if it can't stand peace and tranquility. It seizes every opportunity to create chaos, and if there's no opportunity, it creates one. It's purely for the sake of chaos, and it's unclear what its motives are. Even if it were to take advantage of the chaos to seize power, that would be understandable, but it just doesn't do that. It creates trouble and then doesn't care.

Even Chen Xuan suspected that the Southern Rong Kingdom's nationwide turmoil and widespread warfare caused by last year's severe drought was most likely instigated by the Black Tu Society. Otherwise, how could a drought lead a relatively peaceful country to the brink of collapse? It all happened too quickly, as if a large part of the process had been omitted.

The little princess's question made Chen Xuan hesitate for a moment before shaking his head. He said, "It's unlikely that she's being manipulated by the Black Diagram Society. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been completely unresponsive when I used the Purple Mystic Illusion Eye. If the Black Diagram Society really is behind this, she's probably just unknowingly become someone else's pawn. In a situation where someone is scheming against you, even a Grandmaster would find it difficult to defend against such a powerful scheme. After all, a Grandmaster's cultivation level only indicates strength, not necessarily intelligence."

As Chen Xuan said this, he thought to himself that it was just like him. They were taught by the same teacher, but Xiao Gao became the top scholar while he couldn't even pass the county-level exam. He was quite speechless.

Nodding, the little princess agreed wholeheartedly, saying, "I also don't think she was acting under someone's orders. Judging from my husband's description of her, she's not someone who would willingly submit to others, especially not to a heretical organization."

Putting those thoughts aside, Chen Xuan asked, "Then, my wife, do you think her appearance is normal?"

“Yan Quan is her apprentice and her own nephew. It’s only natural for her, as an elder, to step in and help him when he’s been wronged. Moreover, she has a long-standing fondness for handsome men, so it’s normal for her to be captivated by her husband at first sight. But since her husband feels there’s something strange about it, it’s always better to think the worst and take precautions,” the little princess said rationally from the perspective of a guest.

Chen Xuan agreed, saying, "Since that's the case, let's assume that Tingyin appeared before me because of the Black Diagram Society's influence. So, my wife, what do you think the person behind this is after?"

Instead of answering that question, the little princess asked curiously, "Husband, why did you immediately think of the Black Tu Society? You told me a saying: 'Once the seed of suspicion is planted, the guilt is already established.' So when you thought of the Black Tu Society, you felt that they were targeting you."

Chen Xuan frankly replied, "The reason I thought of the Black Diagram Society is because Tingyin cultivates Buddhist divine skills, and she even went astray during her practice, which led to her current infatuated personality. This fits the style of the Black Diagram Society perfectly, planting an unstable factor in the martial arts world. Even if it's just a seemingly insignificant move, it can be very useful when you think of it at a crucial moment. As far as I know, the Black Diagram Society is controlled by Buddhism, not just any Buddhist sect. Furthermore, the Black Diagram Society thrives on chaos and can't stand seeing me living a peaceful life. They deliberately guided her to disrupt my tranquil existence. Also, I recently went to Wanku Mountain to collect geomagnetic essence and happened to have a conflict with a member of the Black Diagram Society. I remember telling you about this, my wife."

The little princess's gaze immediately sharpened, and she said in a deep voice, "Husband, you said that the Black Diagram Society is controlled by the Buddhist sect? This matter is of utmost importance. Father has been troubled by this countless times and has been unable to find a clue. Now that we have this lead, we must tell Father immediately. There is a chance to completely eradicate the Black Diagram Society within our borders!"

Chen Xuan gestured for her to calm down and shook his head, saying, "My lady, please calm down. Father-in-law has already abdicated and is no longer involved in affairs. There's no need to inform him. Even if he knew, he'd probably pretend not to know, so it wouldn't make much difference. Besides, given Father-in-law's abilities, do you really think he doesn't know that the Black Diagram Society is controlled by Buddhism? It's just that this matter is of great importance. Buddhism is widespread throughout the world, and we can't act rashly without evidence. There are countless Buddhist followers, and a slight mistake could cause a major upheaval. And don't even think about informing your emperor brother. Father-in-law has entrusted the entire country to him; surely he'll tell him about the Black Diagram Society, this potential threat?" Hearing this, the little princess paused for a moment, then thoughtfully said, "That's right, I was overthinking it. Please don't laugh at me, my husband."

Waving his hand, Chen Xuan said, "Getting back to the point, if it's really as we've discussed, then what are they after?"

The little princess, having calmed down, pondered, "My husband has a grudge against the Black Map Society, so it makes sense that he suspects Tingyin was secretly influenced by the Black Map Society to get close to you. Last time, you said that the Black Map Society was plotting against the Mu Haiwang family in an attempt to sow discord between you and the royal family, but you exposed their scheme on the spot, and their efforts failed."

Chen Xuan nodded and did not disturb her, waiting for the little princess to continue.

Then the little princess held up two fingers and pondered, "Husband, now it seems that if the Black Diagram Society's target is you, I think there are two purposes. First, they are still up to no good and want to sow discord between you and our Jing Kingdom's royal family. After all, we haven't been married long, and to outsiders, we don't seem to have a deep relationship yet. As for Tingyin, as you just said, she truly deserves to be called the most beautiful woman in Yuhua Kingdom. Even if you want to get rid of trouble as soon as possible, you can't say something like she's not beautiful. So it's hard for you not to be attracted to her, and there's a high chance that she will ruin our marital relationship. Especially with her unpredictable personality and strength, it's hard to say what she might do. If she's extremely possessive and jealous, and takes advantage of you when you're not careful, and something happens to me, it could cause you to turn against the court. In that case, their goal will be achieved!"

After listening to his wife's analysis, Chen Xuan's gaze sharpened. He hadn't thought of all this before. It was definitely a honey trap. If that were the case, and he had been a little too loose with his guard and had fallen for her charms, he could have easily been tricked. Her intentions were truly despicable.

Perhaps it's because his wife is so clever, or maybe it's because some women are very sensitive about these things. Anyway, Chen Xuan never imagined the other party would be so vicious. Think about it, they've been married for only a short time. If something were to happen to the little princess, wouldn't the royal family demand an explanation from Chen Xuan to save face? What if someone did something behind the scenes, making people think that Chen Xuan was favoring his concubine over his wife? Tsk tsk, things would get really serious. The royal family would probably fight Chen Xuan to the death, and the old emperor would be the first to not let him off the hook. If that happened, what would become of them?
At this moment, Chen Xuan almost broke out in a cold sweat. Firstly, just as the little princess had analyzed, the other party's methods were far too dirty. Secondly, if something were to happen to his wife, as the person Chen Xuan cared about most in this world, he found it hard to imagine what he would do!

Fortunately, it was just an analysis and hadn't actually happened yet, but Chen Xuan secretly warned himself that he had to be wary of such things, lest he regret it when it actually happened.

Unfazed by this, Chen Xuan calmly nodded and said, "Please continue, my wife. What do you think their other purpose is?"

The little princess remained calm. There were far more sordid and despicable methods in the palace than this, and she was used to them. She continued, "Secondly, just as you analyzed, my husband, the other party is plotting to seize the cave world beneath Wanku Mountain. You have not only been there, but you have also had contact with the giant natives there. Therefore, there is no reason not to use you as a pretext."

"My husband, think about it. My brother, the emperor, has only recently ascended the throne and hasn't fully grasped the situation yet. My fifth brother has also declared independence. This is a time when my brother is in a state of utter chaos. Coupled with the drought, this is the perfect opportunity for the Black Diagram Society to cause trouble. After all, that cave world represents countless resources. Once the cave world falls under the control of the Black Diagram Society, it's hard to imagine what they might do."

"In short, even if Tingyin's arrival isn't meant to sow discord between us, given her personality, my husband will definitely be overwhelmed and have a lot of trouble dealing with her. At that point, he probably won't have much energy to figure out what Heitu is planning, and he might even fall into their trap without realizing it. As for how they target you and what they want from you, that's beyond my comprehension."

"Of course, all of this is based on the premise that the Black Map Society is targeting you, my husband. As you said, if Tingyin is just a casual move for them, then they won't suffer any losses whether it succeeds or not. Conversely, if we guess wrong, it won't have any impact. Speaking of which, it's possible that we're overthinking things. Tingyin's arrival is a very normal thing. The fact that you fell for her at first sight is just her personality. That's all I can think of. Is there anything else you'd like to add, my husband?"

After listening to Chen Xuan, he was also a little conflicted. In the end, things that didn't happen shouldn't be taken seriously.

But what kind of situation is this? I just wanted to slack off and be a couch potato, so why did this happen to me? What did I do to deserve this?

Regardless, we must be vigilant and take precautions. Of course, it's best if nothing happens, but we're afraid of being caught off guard by a sudden attack.

If they're trying to sow discord between me and the little princess, causing a falling out with the Jing Kingdom's royal family, what would the Black Map Society gain? Okay, they're crazy. Maybe they have no ulterior motives and just can't stand seeing others do well. If they're after the underground grotto, what does that have to do with me? The grotto is there, it's not mine, and they won't get any benefit from me. At most, they might learn some things about the grotto from me, which is quite possible. But what use would Listening Sound have?
"No, no, am I thinking in the wrong direction? If the Black Map Society is after the Cave Heaven, what would attract them there? Could it be the giants' most precious treasure, the Dragon Pearl left behind by the Dragon Lord who created the Cave Heaven, the one that draws beast tides to attack Sun City every now and then? Anyone who knows about such a treasure wouldn't miss it, right? And then there's the Underworld Clan. The Black Map Society thrives on chaos; could they want to release the Underworld Clan to wreak havoc on the world? Knowing the Black Map Society's style, they're definitely capable of doing something like that!"

After thinking it over, Chen Xuan simply gave up and shook his head, saying, "As the saying goes, you can only be a thief for a thousand days, but you can't guard against thieves for a thousand days. There's no use worrying about it. Since things have come to this, let's eat first and not let it affect our appetite."

The best thing would be to catch a member of the Black Picture Society and find out if the analysis is correct, but this organization is too mysterious, like a rat in a stinking ditch, where can we find one?

Knowing they're backed by Buddhism, but without evidence, can we just attack them without any reason? The key is, we don't even have a target. Should we go to Wuxiang Temple? Or that nunnery Dujuan mentioned? Even if we went there, would they admit to being from the Black Society? It would only make us enemies.

Who cares? Instead of creating trouble for myself, I might as well have a happy honeymoon with my wife. I've already finished dealing with the rain in Yang County. It was all planned long ago, so there's no time like the present. Let's set off today.

The little princess didn't think too much about it. At this moment, she bit her chopsticks with her rosy lips and looked at Chen Xuan with great interest, asking, "By the way, husband, putting all that aside, tell me about Tingyin. Is she really as beautiful as the rumors say? After you saw her face, were you really not tempted at all?"

...(End of chapter)