Martial Arts Crossover: It All Started with Hijacking Li Canghai

Bringing my thoughts back, it's time to put my plans into action.

"It's almost been a month already," Qin Han sighed. Time always flies when you're in the lap of luxury. He then instructed Zhu Jian, "Zhu Jian, go and tell the leaders of the Nine Heavens and Nine Departments, as well as the core disciples of the palace, to wait for me in the main hall. Tell them the new Lord has important news to announce!"

Zhu Jian hurriedly replied, "Yes! This servant will go and do it right away!" After saying that, she lightly touched the ground with her toes and used her lightness skill to run away to deliver the message, afraid of being even a little too slow.

Although this little girl is young, her foundation in Lingjiu Palace's lightness skill is quite strong. These four sisters were probably personally taught by Li Canghai, and their martial arts skills are all quite good.

Qin Han then looked at Ju Jian, who seemed somewhat at a loss, and remembered that there was still an unlucky Boss Wu who hadn't been dealt with. This was a good dog. In the future, he wouldn't have time to manage such a rabble as the Thirty-Six Caves and Seventy-Two Islands, so it would be better to let this vicious dog keep an eye on them.

He turned to Ju Jian beside him and asked, "Is that Boss Wu from before dead?"

Ju Jian felt a jolt in her heart when Qin Han looked at her, her face flushed, and she quickly replied, "He, he's still... he's been locked up in the underground dungeon by me."

The prison that Ju Jian mentioned was the one that Lingjiu Palace used to deal with some disobedient leaders. When she said this, her voice was a little weak. She glanced at Qin Han's face, afraid that her new master would blame her for acting on her own initiative.

"It's alright, as long as he doesn't starve to death." Qin Han waved his hand dismissively. It's just a dog; even if it dies, we can just get another one. "Go and take him to the main hall. My wife and I will go there first."

"Yes, Master. This servant will go and fetch the person right away." Ju Jian responded and hurriedly ran off to fetch the person.

After the two sisters left, Qin Han naturally took Li Canghai's hand and squeezed it twice. Li Canghai only struggled symbolically for a moment before letting him hold her hand.

The two walked side by side toward the main hall of Lingjiu Palace.

"Qin Han..." Li Canghai looked around to make sure no one was there, then turned to Qin Han and said, "Have you... really thought this through? Once you take the first step in this kind of thing, there's no turning back."

Although Li Canghai has been living in seclusion at Lingjiu Palace for many years, he is not entirely unaware of the situation in the world.

The Song Dynasty of today can also be called the Southern Song Dynasty, since the north is now part of the Qing Dynasty. Although the Southern Song Dynasty still appears prosperous on the surface, it is actually rotten to the core.

The court was corrupt and incompetent, treacherous officials held power, and the country was surrounded by powerful enemies and plagued by displaced people.

Even so, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse. The legitimacy of the Zhao family in the Southern Song Dynasty was deeply rooted in the hearts of the Han people. As long as the Southern Song Dynasty did not fall, the powerful families would not support any rebel army. How easy would it be for the Qin and Han dynasties to rise up in rebellion?

"Although the world is in chaos now, the Southern Song Dynasty is still the legitimate Han Chinese dynasty," Li Canghai sighed, his voice full of worry for the Qin and Han dynasties.

"Your martial arts skills have reached the peak that one can achieve at this age. But conquering an empire is not like fighting in a ring; it cannot be accomplished by your superior martial arts skills alone."

Without talent, without soldiers, without money... even if Lingjiu Palace gambles everything, it's nothing more than a large antelope, utterly powerless against the army of Chuan Prefecture.

He stopped and looked at Qin Han seriously, continuing, "If you only want to be a king in the martial world, with Lingjiu Palace and me here, no one in this world will dare to provoke us. But the path you are going to take... one wrong step and you will fall into an abyss."

The Southern Song Dynasty was different from the Northern Qing Dynasty. Even if the Northern Qing Dynasty took over the north, they were still considered barbarians in the eyes of the Han people. If you were in the Northern Qing Dynasty, as long as you had enough strength and the right to claim the moral high ground, you would still have a chance.

The intellectual integrity, the constraints of traditional etiquette, and the intricate web of powerful clans in the Southern Song Dynasty were far more complex than you imagine. Have you really... thought this through?

Li Canghai was genuinely worried about Qin Han. Originally, she only wanted to stay in Lingjiu Palace and live a peaceful life with this man. However, Qin Han's ambition was too great. After calming down, she realized that his ambition was so great that even she, a native grandmaster, felt uneasy.

One wrong move and you're in a nine-generation genocide game; an ordinary person would have been terrified to death if they heard Qin Han say that.

Although Lingjiu Palace was renowned in the martial arts world, especially in Sichuan, its role in the grand scheme of vying for supremacy was ultimately limited. Moreover, Lingjiu Palace's influence in the Southern Song Dynasty was far less entrenched than in the north.

If Qin Han were to go north, Lingjiu Palace would be even less able to help him.

This was the first time Qin Han had seen Li Canghai looking so worried. His heart warmed; she was genuinely thinking of him. He reached out and pulled her closer, kissing her beautiful face.

"Hey, let's get down to business, what are you doing..." Li Canghai, who had just been worried, blushed with embarrassment and quickly looked around, afraid that some passing disciple would see him.

"What's there to be afraid of? It's only natural for me to kiss my own wife, who dares to say anything?" Qin Han laughed heartily, his shameless behavior both infuriating and endearing to Li Canghai.

Qin Han suppressed his smile and looked at Li Canghai seriously, saying, "I, Qin Han, never do anything I'm not sure of. I would never gamble my life and my wife's future without being 90% certain."

The Southern Song Dynasty appeared powerful, but it was outwardly strong but inwardly weak, as evidenced by its loss of half its territory to the Qing Dynasty. The Southern Song was like a rotten tree hollowed out by worms; even without external interference, it would eventually wither and die.

After a pause, Qin Yu said confidently, "I will find talent, recruit soldiers, and money—the world has both plenty and scarcity of money. I will announce some important matters later, and you will know that I am not blindly arrogant."

Looking at Qin Han's undisguised ambition, Li Canghai felt that this man, despite speaking of beheading, was always more attractive to him. He gave him a helpless glare.

"Tch, what's with all this 'husband' stuff? You're shameless." Li Canghai pointed at Qin Han with his finger and said resignedly, "You really can change your form of address whenever you want. One minute you call me 'wife,' and the next you call me 'good sister.'"

One minute you're calling me my junior apprentice, the next you're calling me your good brother... I really don't know where you get all this scheming from. I must have owed you something in my past life to have gotten on your pirate ship like this without even realizing it.

The two walked toward the hall as they spoke.

Hearing Li Canghai's resentful yet earnest tone, Qin Han deliberately said, "Madam, it's not too late to get off the ship now. This ship of mine is heading into the lion's den; it might capsize any day now."

Li Canghai stopped again, his eyes, as clear as autumn water, fixed intently on Qin Han's face.

With a tender yet firm tone, she spoke each word with utmost seriousness: "If you wish to retire to the mountains, I will live a simple life with you, farming and weaving, working at sunrise and resting at sunset. If you aspire to be the greatest in the world, I will accompany you on your journey, sharpening your sword and serving you tea. Now that you wish to be a great rebel, then... then I will be your thief's wife!"