Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 400 Go ahead and cause trouble, I'll take care of things.

Although Ye Tinglan and Long Qinghuang rarely faced each other directly, they could definitely be considered arch-enemies. For a long time, each of them considered the other their primary enemy, and they still are.

Just as one can only refer to Ye Tinglan as "Master" in front of Long Qinghuang, otherwise the tigress will surely go berserk, one should never easily admit that kind of relationship to Ye Tinglan, otherwise the currently sweet and gentle "Master" will probably change his expression immediately.

Before mediating the conflict between the two, Lu Xingzhou certainly couldn't tell the truth: "The Dragon Emperor values ​​my abilities, so I guess you could say he... recognizes my talent."

Even just saying that, Ye Tinglan looked somewhat displeased.

This time, Lu Xingzhou did not back down. Instead, he continued to speak up for Long Qinghuang: "The Dragon Emperor is magnanimous and did not restrain me. Instead, he let me return. I am grateful. If we compare the rulers of the two countries, Long Qinghuang is definitely superior to Gu Zhanting by a whole street."

Ye Tinglan stared at him for a long time, then suddenly smiled: "The internal strife in the Demon Realm is indeed your doing, helping Long Qinghuang."

Lu Xingzhou answered frankly, "Yes."

"Looking at it this way, Long Qinghuang really has it tough. She knows how useful you are, yet she's still willing to let you go. In my previous understanding of her, if an enemy's talent is not useful, they would most likely kill them."

“Gu Zhanting might, but Long Qinghuang might not, even towards others.” Lu Xingzhou suddenly said, “My impression of Long Qinghuang has been gradually overturned. Do you want to hear about it?”

"Hmm...you go ahead."

"The first upheaval came when we discovered that her inner palace was practically empty, with only a dozen or so maids. Did this contradict the impression that the Dragon Emperor was fond of gold and silver and indulged in extravagance?"

Ye Tinglan was somewhat surprised: "That's true. Everyone assumes that if she likes treasures, she must be extravagant."

"Although she liked treasures, she didn't pursue them blindly. Furthermore, this incident also proves that she looked down on eunuchs..."

Ye Tinglan smiled and said, "Yes, continue."

"The second upheaval was the discovery that humans in the Demon Capital were living very well. Hmm, you probably already knew that? For me, it was indeed quite a shock."

Ye Tinglan nodded: "Although I knew it before, I thought it was just an act."

"The third upheaval was when she discovered dozens of women in the temple and actually had them ride on her back to take back to the Demon Capital."

Ye Tinglan was originally leaning against his shoulder chatting, but after hearing this, she suddenly sat up and looked at him in great surprise.

"It's not that she doesn't care about hierarchy or equality... In fact, she has an extremely strong sense of self-importance. Although she doesn't say it out loud, she is very proud of her noble bloodline. At the time, it was because of the urgency of the situation; there was no other way to take so many people away at once... But this at least proves that she doesn't care about trivial matters and only values ​​practicality. Has our previous perception of her as someone who values ​​face above all else been overturned?"

Ye Tinglan's expression turned serious. Lu Xingzhou's kind words did not lessen her hostility towards Long Qinghuang much; on the contrary, they made her feel that this enemy was much more difficult to deal with than she had imagined.

Because the weaknesses in the Dragon Emperor's personality that were previously thought to exist are actually non-existent, which is completely absurd.

Lu Xingzhou said, "I used the aura observation method you taught me to see that dragon aura permeates the Demon Capital. Even if the Holy Mountain demon monk's scheme succeeded and the dragon clan's lifeline was severed, Long Qinghuang's own aura is even stronger, which is a sign of devouring everything. On the other hand, look at the Great Qian..."

The conversation ended there, and Ye Tinglan also fell silent.

He had been flirting with Daqian before, saying that the Qi Meridian of the Great Qian Dynasty was almost gone. Although he said it in a joking tone, it wasn't entirely unfounded.

The aura of the Great Qian Dynasty is so strong that even those who don't understand astrology can see the problem just by looking at the situation. Gu Zhanting's actions are inexplicable, and he is drifting further and further away from the important Tianyao Holy Land. Compared to Long Qinghuang, who is working hard to govern, even though they have just experienced internal strife, they are not on the same level.

Long Qinghuang said that he would lead his army south within a few years, and the chances of winning were indeed not low.

The conversation naturally transitioned from Long Qinghuang to the Great Qian Dynasty, and Lu Xingzhou asked directly, "When I arrived, were you observing the stars and divining?"

"Ah."

"What did you figure out?"

Ye Tinglan stopped thinking about Long Qinghuang and sighed as she leaned against him: "An ominous omen, extremely ominous."

"No wonder the atmosphere was so tense when we first met." Lu Xingzhou asked curiously, "What divination result?"

“Landmine Returns, Top Six”.

Ye Tinglan deliberately avoided reciting the divination text, which was also a small test of the basic knowledge she had taught Lu Xingzhou.

Lu Xingzhou didn't disappoint her, quickly saying, "Mi Fu, ominous, harbingers of disaster. Using it for military campaigns will ultimately lead to a great defeat, because its ruler is inauspicious, and for ten years it will be unable to wage war. Doesn't this sound like you were calculating the previous battle?"

Ye Tinglan was quite pleased that he still remembered what she had taught him, but then shook his head: "There's no need to associate it with specific events, like ten years or something... This divination I made was about the fate of the nation."

Lu Xingzhou said, "The danger of being misled and confused is a reversal of the way of the ruler..."

“Yes. To return is to align with the Way; to be misled by return is to go against the Way, and the misfortune is foreseeable.” Ye Tinglan sighed, “A wise person who loses his way, but later returns to the Way and is blessed in the end, is this how one returns from the wrong path. He, however, knows his mistake but makes it again, going against the Way.” Lu Xingzhou frowned. Judging from this divination, some things that Gu Zhanting had been speculating about in the Demon Realm were about to be exposed, and it seemed that it was indeed coming soon.

Ye Tinglan said in a low voice, "You can help the Demon Realm solve its problems, but can you consider the Great Qian Dynasty's interests to some extent? I know you want to say that I am not a person of the Great Qian Dynasty, so why should I care... But what has the world done wrong?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "The problem now is that we don't know what he's planning. We only have some scraps of information, so it's hard to judge. Besides, within the broader context of the Great Qian Dynasty, it's still a stable and powerful country. People still support the Gu family's royal family, the legal system is very stable, and all the immortal sects in the world are obedient. If things go wrong, we might end up being the villains with ulterior motives."

"Yes, that's why it's so frustrating. Even in terms of sheer power, the royal family isn't that simple," Ye Tinglan said. "Do you have any suggestions?"

Lu Xingzhou pondered for a while, then suddenly laughed and said, "The Huo family knows a lot about the emperor's affairs. Let me gather some grass first and see what I can find."

Ye Tinglan was amused by this: "So it's a win-win situation, both public and private, right?"

"No." Lu Xingzhou lowered his head and gently kissed her forehead: "If I couldn't bear to see you frowning, I really wouldn't care about the Great Qian. My own revenge is private, and yours is also private; there's no public interest involved."

Ye Tinglan looked at him with sparkling eyes: "With Shen Tang around, you don't care about the state of Daqian?"

"Tangtang initially only wanted to stay away from the royal family's power struggles. It was I who encouraged her to stand up and compete. In the worst-case scenario, she would just be the head of a sect, and what would the affairs of the world have to do with her? That was also her original idea. In the best-case scenario... it would most likely be about governing the country, rather than some royal succession struggle."

"That's why you never considered Daqian and Shen Tang as one, which is why you asked me to step outside Daqian instead of trying to get me to help her as well."

"Hmm. From the very beginning, I never thought about anything like vying for the throne. I don't even know what the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Qi are thinking. Their fathers, if things were normal, would have lived for at least several hundred years. What are they thinking about? Oh, the Imperial Ultimate Scripture isn't great for lifespan, right? Well, it's still two or three hundred years, right? If I were like them and made helping Tangtang seize the throne my main goal, I'd be just as brain-dead as them. Of course, I still need to make some preparations. It's still necessary to help Tangtang gain some political capital, like arranging for her to come to the aid this time... Even if we have to deal with the reorganization of the country in the future, it will still be meaningful."

Ye Tinglan suddenly flew into a rage, grabbing his waist and saying, "I thought it was because you cared more about me than about her!"

"Holy crap?" Lu Xingzhou never expected that Gu Zhanting's bombshell hadn't even exploded yet, but his own had exploded first... But he had never said anything like that, so what did it have to do with him that this guy was imagining things like that...

When it comes to overconfident imagination, you sisters are definitely related.

And he and the narcissistic mother dragon are truly lifelong enemies, so similar in some ways!
"Get out of here! Don't touch me for three days!" The Grand Preceptor was furious and kicked the county magistrate he had summoned out of the observatory.

The Taoist priests outside looked straight ahead at Lu Xingzhou, who emerged in a disheveled state.

This person stayed inside with the Imperial Advisor for over an hour, and now his clothes are all disheveled.

Of course, you could also say that he was beaten up like this by the imperial advisor, and he can believe whichever he wants...

"Ahem, the county magistrate will stay."

Lu Xingzhou turned his head and saw that it was Su Yuan: "Uh, Old Su, you're still here. What should I call you now?"

“Deputy Grand Preceptor,” Su Yuan stroked his beard and smiled, “Actually, that was the case from the beginning. I was just ‘acting’ as Grand Preceptor before, and was only temporarily acting as his deputy.”

Lu Xingzhou said, "It seems that the position of Deputy Imperial Advisor was not established before?"

“Of course it’s all thanks to the county magistrate.” Su Yuan said with a smile, “In the past, the Holy Lord personally participated in worldly affairs, which made her extremely tired. Now she only needs to focus on cultivation, and all worldly affairs have been handed over to me.”

That can indeed be attributed to Lu Xingzhou. Once Ye Tinglan's perspective shifted, the affairs of the Great Qian Dynasty were just that—a matter of course. It was enough to keep an eye on things from behind the scenes; there was really no need for him to get involved personally.

This inadvertently gave Su Yuan a much better position, so Su Yuan's attitude towards Lu Xingzhou was naturally exceptionally good.

"The Emperor truly favors the County Magistrate, having someone keep an eye on you and summon you as soon as the court session ends, he can't wait. Just now, he specifically instructed me to come and ask if the County Magistrate needs any help."

The man was shooing people out while simultaneously sending someone over to ask if they needed any help.

Lu Xingzhou was both amused and exasperated: "Not for now, but I won't hesitate to ask if you need it."

Su Yuan lowered his voice: "The Holy Lord said that if the county magistrate wants to deal with the Huo family, he doesn't need to be as restrained as before. He can do whatever he wants. Even if he makes a huge mess, she will cover for him."

Lu Xingzhou laughed and said, "Sir, you don't seem like the type to say such things. You've polished it up, haven't you?"

Su Yuan shook his head: "That's exactly what she said. She also said that Lu Xingzhou caused trouble at the Demon Clan's Holy Mountain for no reason, and that mother dragon was able to back him up. She deserved to make a profit... How could I, Ye Tinglan, be inferior to her!"

Lu Xingzhou's eyes widened.

So Ye Tinglan knew about this... no, how did she know?
Thinking of this, he felt a slight stirring in his heart. He turned his head and saw that Anuo was carrying a pig and running away around the corner.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

PS: First update of September, please vote with monthly tickets~ There will be three updates today.

(End of this chapter)