Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

As long as you want to compare, there will always be something worse. You should not complain about the treatment you receive now, but rather be grateful.

As for the less than ten taels of silver in hand, good heavens, you don't charge for collecting corpses, do you?

Isn't it normal to spend five or eight taels?

The entire team is dead. There's no one left in the business to rely on. It's a miracle they didn't plunder your entire fortune!

Stop talking nonsense, take whatever you're given, and if you keep making a fuss, we'll take back everything else!

The troublemakers were temporarily imprisoned, while the Dark Feather Guards were negotiating with the leaders of the two sects, discussing various terms.

The truth of the matter is impossible to investigate, but based on Zhuangzi's decades of experience traveling the world, he could easily guess several major possibilities.

The most likely possibility is that it cannot be spoken, and can only be kept in one's heart.

However, whatever the truth may be, it is no longer important to Zhuang Sheng at this moment.

Jun Cheng'an personally summoned Zhuang Sheng and offered him a few words of comfort, mentioning the dangers of the martial world and the difficulties faced by the imperial court.

Zhuang Sheng responded sincerely, his words filled with hatred for the martial arts world, vowing to bring the martial arts practitioners who killed his student to justice.

Jun Cheng'an was naturally satisfied with this, and with a wave of his hand, he arranged for Zhuang Sheng to have one hundred imperial guards so that he could do what he wanted.

……

"You're welcome. It's not easy for anyone to go through something like this. You're raising two children alone, and you have a long life ahead of you. You'll need money to make ends meet..."

"Madam Chen, please don't be so polite. Chen Guang is working for me. Now that something has happened that no one wanted to see, I would feel guilty if I did nothing."

"Thank you, sir, thank you, sir, you are such a kind person..."

Similar conversations continued for two days. Zhuang Sheng went to the Sihai Trading Company to ask for information about the bodyguard who died while escorting He Qingmu.

He gave each family ten taels of silver and some firewood, rice, oil, and salt.

For families like Chen Guang's, he spent an extra ten taels of silver to exchange for daily necessities and some copper coins, which he then gave to them.

Accompanying him were some soldiers responsible for carrying supplies, and also Han Sheng, who had run back from home after hearing about He Qingmu's situation.

Seeing Zhuang Sheng walk out of Chen Guang's house, Han Sheng, who had been holding back for a long time, finally asked the question.

"Lord Zhuang, why are you doing this? These bodyguards are just commoners. It is their honor to die protecting Junior Brother He. Why do you have to use your own salary to compensate them?"

Instead of wasting money on them, we should build a larger mausoleum for our junior brother and give him a proper burial.

If the money is insufficient, we classmates can also contribute to ensure that Junior Brother He's reputation is not buried in the afterlife.

Han Sheng spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world, completely unaware of the problem in his words.

Or perhaps, in his own viewpoint, what he said was not problematic at all.

Zhuang Sheng stared at Han Sheng for a while.

Among the students of the Hanlin Academy who studied under him, Han Sheng was one of the more outspoken ones, and also a typical example of the sons of high-ranking officials.

Han Sheng is polite, thoughtful, and his knowledge and conversation are among the best of all the students.

He was a man of great respect for his teachers. Even though he knew that Zhuang Sheng was just a pawn, he still treated Zhuang Sheng with utmost respect and treated him as a teacher, leaving no room for criticism.

But Zhuang Sheng felt from the bottom of his heart that things shouldn't be like this.

How could such a talented young man from a prominent family treat ordinary people with such an attitude?

If all the powerful scions of these families were like this, where would the world go in the future?

Seeing Han Sheng's nonchalant attitude, Zhuang Sheng ultimately did not reveal his true thoughts.

He knew very well how difficult it was to change the personality traits formed in childhood and adolescence. These traits were ingrained in one's bones, and whether they were pride or cowardice, they often accompanied a person throughout their life.

The understanding that Han Sheng had developed from childhood could not possibly be changed by his few words.

If he had more time, Zhuang Sheng wouldn't mind giving it a try, but he didn't have time.

He patted his chest and answered Han Sheng in a rather somber tone.

"Aoki died a tragic death. As his teacher, I should do my part to accumulate some merit for him."

Han Sheng showed an apologetic expression and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Zhuang Sheng.

"It was my oversight, Master Zhuang. I never imagined you would have considered so many things. I admire you greatly."

For the next two weeks, Zhuang Sheng lived a life that was much the same as before.

He further expanded the scope of the porridge distribution, making its impact even greater.

During the day, he walked around Qi'an City, helping those in need whenever he encountered them, and received countless thanks in return.

Every night, he racked his brains, trying his best to make the content of his speeches easier for the people to understand.

Gradually, Zhuang Sheng's reputation spread, and many people in the area called him "the great philanthropist."

He still walks into the alley where beggars gather every day, bringing the simplest food, and watches as more and more children gather there.

The little girl named Wanshu would always ask him many questions, and Zhuang Sheng also liked this polite child very much.

On the third day after He Qingmu's death, Wanshu asked Zhuang Sheng what exactly happened that day and why he was so sad.

Zhuang Sheng smiled but did not answer, only rubbing her head.

He watched Wan Shu relentlessly question the new method, and watched her hide in a corner where no one was watching, wolfing down the special food he had prepared for her.

Watching her rejoice over the smallest things, and grieve when talking about the past.

Zhuang Sheng felt that he saw the shadow of He Qingmu in this little beggar, so much so that he wanted to pass on his mantle.

Holding onto ideas he himself didn't understand, Zhuang Sheng spent over a decade accumulating knowledge and skillfully opened up Wan Shu's meridians. He then taught Wan Shu the martial arts techniques he had learned from the martial arts master who had passed on his skills.

He booked a room for Wanshu at a restaurant in the Seventh Ring Road for a year, so that she wouldn't have to live a life of hardship outside every day.

As long as they are willing to work hard, this period of time is enough for the child to develop the first wisp of true qi.

Until the sixth day of the sixth month of the first year of the Tianshun era.

Zhuang Sheng sat at his desk and, as always, wrote down his life's work, stroke by stroke.

A group of fully armed imperial guards swarmed into the gates of the Hanlin Academy.

These men were the garrison of the Vermilion Bird Gate, clad in crimson armor, and led by their commander, Chu Tiansheng.

A member of the Chu family who narrowly escaped disaster because he was serving in Qi'an City.

Crimson armor, upright posture, fluttering flags—how majestic, how laughable!

If this person were to go to Qishan Road, he probably wouldn't dare to utter a single word.

No, there's no need to go to Qishan Road. This person was probably terrified during the palace incident a few years ago.

Zhuangzi thought this way, but he didn't move and continued writing his own things.

He had already written most of it, which was a bit of a pity. He didn't know if these drafts would ever reach the desks of those important figures.