My name is Wei Qing, and I want to fight the Xiongnu.

"Please go on, Dean Lü."

With his hands behind his back, Lü Kuang asked, "Wei Qing's accommodations haven't been arranged yet, have they?"

"Since we just enrolled, things haven't been arranged yet."

Lü Kuang smiled. Since the arrangements weren't finalized, he suggested, "Wei Qing's performance today was remarkable. I believe that such a gifted student deserves better treatment. If there's any shortcoming, it's that he's a bit too impatient. Therefore, I propose that Wei Qing stay at the Cultivation Pavilion, hoping that he can take this opportunity to cultivate his mind and character."

"The Pavilion of Cultivating the Mind?"

Fan Tian was stunned for a few seconds when he heard the suggestion. He never expected that Lü Kuang would suggest that Wei Qing move into Xiuxin Pavilion.

This Xiuxin Pavilion is truly remarkable.

If the imperial palace is the place in Chang'an Royal City where the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathers, then the Cultivation Pavilion gathers the malevolent energy of Chang'an Royal City.

It was considered an extremely inauspicious place, at least that was in the past.

It is said that before the Imperial Academy was established, the Han Dynasty, at the suggestion of Zhang Liang, who was left in charge, spent countless resources to build the Xiuxin Pavilion and personally took charge of it.

Later, Zhang Liang took charge for a hundred years, and with the construction of the Imperial Academy, a large amount of evil energy was transformed into spiritual energy, and the Cultivation Pavilion became a first-class feng shui treasure land of the Imperial Academy.

However, with Zhang Liang, who stayed behind, traveling all over the world, the Xiuxin Pavilion became empty.

Later, the Xiuxin Pavilion was bestowed upon the Imperial Academy by Empress Lü to serve as the dormitory for those brilliant students.

The students of that time were true geniuses.

At first there were no problems, but after some time, news spread that Xiuxin Pavilion was haunted.

Many students say that ghosts wander around the Xiuxin Pavilion at night.

At first, it caused quite a stir, and the entire Imperial Academy knew that the Cultivation Pavilion was haunted, but no one believed it.

With Prime Minister Xiao overseeing the Imperial Academy, even if there were truly ghosts in the Xiuxin Pavilion, they would die again.

When Prime Minister Xiao learned of this, he investigated for a period of time and then ordered all the students to move out of the Xiuxin Pavilion.

Only a few servants were assigned to clean the area daily, and no one else was allowed to enter or leave.

The servants come and go every day, day and night, and they've never even seen a bird's feather, let alone encountered a ghost.

Over time, there will always be those who court death, especially after the Xiongnu barbarians came to Chang'an and entered the Imperial Academy.

They naturally disregarded the previous legends, so several geniuses from the Xiongnu tribes insisted on moving into the Xiuxin Pavilion despite being advised against it.

At first, they were all safe and sound, but a few months later, they all suddenly died tragically overnight.

This incident even caused a dispute between the two tribes at the time, and they almost came to blows.

Because of this, the students realized once again that the Xiuxin Pavilion might really be haunted, so no one suggested moving into the Xiuxin Pavilion.

As the Imperial Academy continued to expand, the Xiuxin Pavilion, which was originally located in the center of the academy, became increasingly remote.

Now, more than two hundred years later, rumors of ghosts occasionally circulate about Xiuxin Pavilion, but people treat it as a joke, just like they did two hundred years ago, and no one takes it seriously.

What kind of bastard dares to run wild in the Imperial Academy?

Tired of dying?

Regardless of the rumors of ghosts, the Xiuxin Pavilion is filled with a large amount of spiritual energy, which is not only suitable for cultivation, but also has a miraculous effect on healing injuries, making it very suitable for self-cultivation.

Fan Tian was unsure about Lü Kuang's suggestion. He said, "If Wei Qing doesn't want to go, can the Martial Arts Academy force him to go?"

Lu Kuang was very confident: "Don't worry, he will definitely go. I got some news from an official at noon. Wei Qing came to the Imperial Academy to look for something, and what he found is related to the Cultivation Pavilion."

"Is that Cultivation Pavilion... really haunted?"

Upon hearing Fan Tian's doubts, Lü Kuang took a deep breath and said, "There really are ghosts there. When I first entered the Imperial Academy as a young man, the head of the family warned me never to go to the Cultivation Pavilion, because there really are ghosts there."

If I were to actually enter the Cultivation Pavilion and encounter something I shouldn't have, or see a ghost I shouldn't have, then even the Lü family lineage wouldn't be able to protect me. Therefore, nearly two hundred years have passed, and I still haven't dared to set foot there even a fraction of a step.

I was merely suggesting it; I'm not forcing Wei Qing to move into Xiuxin Pavilion. You just need to have someone explain to him that whether he wants to move in or not is his own choice.

Fan Tian nodded and said, "Alright, I'll find someone to talk to him later. By the way, who told you that what Wei Qing is looking for is in the Cultivation Pavilion?"

Upon hearing this, Lü Kuang turned his head and gave Fan Tian a meaningful look. After pondering for a long time, he finally uttered a name softly: "Empress!"

Chapter 8: Hidden arrows are easy to guard against, but open attacks are hard to dodge.

Compared to Wei Qing, who was sleeping soundly, Liu Yangxin was in a much worse state.

After Liu Yangxin was summoned by Liu Heng, he stayed in the Prince of Dai's residence for a whole night. The next day at noon, Liu Qi pulled him aside and gave him a lot of advice.

It's simply a hope that Liu Yangxin won't be seduced by men's good looks and will maintain a clear sense of self.

In short, don't let some little bastard benefit from Xu Shenxiang's prophecy.

Finally, as evening approached, Liu Yangxin dragged his weary body back to his residence.

Upon learning that Wei Zifu and her two sisters had moved in, Liu Yangxin asked Qiao Lan to fetch the brocade box from under his bed in his bedroom.

In the dormitory, the three Wei sisters were talking about Wei Qing. Actually, it was mainly Wei Junru and Wei Shao'er who were chatting, while Wei Zifu was more of an observer.

When Wei Junru learned of Wei Qing's situation, she was not too happy. She realized that Wei Qing's behavior had likely offended a large number of people.

The three sisters are likely to be implicated.

Wei Shao'er, on the other hand, was quite open-minded. So what if he was implicated?

It's better than going back to being a slave, isn't it?

If it weren't for Wei Qing, I would still be living a life of hunger and cold.

And who knows, one day he might be beaten to death for saying the wrong thing.

Anyway, Wei Shao'er is already very content. What does it matter if she lives a few years less? At least she can live like a human being now.

The bedroom door was pushed open. Although the Wei sisters had never met Liu Yangxin before, they knew from his attire that this was Princess Liu Yangxin.

The three hurriedly bowed to Liu Yangxin in unison and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Liu Yangxin's eyes lit up when he saw the Wei sisters.

Wei Qing was handsome and beautiful; in terms of appearance alone, he could be considered a dashing young man. Unexpectedly, his three older sisters were also quite attractive.

However, what caught Liu Yangxin's attention the most was Wei Zifu. Her temperament was too unique, aloof and independent, as if she were looking at the world with a cold eye.

"No need for formalities. Just treat this place as your own home. Qiao Lan is my personal maid. When I'm not around, she takes care of all the affairs of the manor. If you need anything in the future, just tell Qiao Lan."

As Liu Yangxin spoke, he took out the brocade box from his hand and handed it over, saying, "Who among you will keep this safe?"

Wei Junru and Wei Shao'er exchanged a glance, not knowing what was in the brocade box, and neither dared to reach in.

Wei Zifu accepted it generously, opened it in front of everyone, and after seeing what was inside, her expression showed no surprise, but rather a hint of bitterness.

Empress Wei Zifu could not predict the future, but what no one knew was that she, like Wei Qing, often had dreams.

She would often dream of strange scenes, but unlike Wei Qing, who always dreamed of leading troops into battle, Wei Zifu's dreams were more about scheming and plotting.

It is precisely because of this that she has been able to keep her emotions in check since childhood, and her speech and behavior are proper and graceful, without a single fault.

If Wei Zifu had a touch of ethereal beauty, that would be understandable, but she was anything but innocent.

"Zifu, have you guessed whose this is?"

Hearing Liu Yangxin's words, Wei Junru and Wei Shao'er, who were standing nearby, came over with great curiosity. When they saw the little finger preserved in special crystal inside the brocade box, they subconsciously let out a gasp.

Wei Zifu said, "Is it A Qing's?"

Liu Yangxin nodded and admitted, "It is Zhongqing's. Zhongqing said that if you give birth but do not raise, you can return the severed finger. Originally, she wanted to sever her relationship with your mother, but she did not expect that she was no longer alive."

“My mother was already in poor health, and the illness she developed after giving birth to us made her death inevitable.”

Wei Zifu gently closed the brocade box and said, "Very well, from now on, the three of us sisters and Aqing will no longer have a sibling relationship."

"Zifu, what are you saying?"

"Yes, Zifu, how could you..."

Wei Zifu shook her head at her two elder sisters and said, "Aqing is protecting us. He wants to sever ties with us in this way so that we can avoid being implicated by him in the future."

"This...isn't right."

Wei Shao'er, the least intelligent of the three sisters, couldn't understand and said, "If they don't want to drag us down and want to show they're cutting ties with us, shouldn't they just leave us alone? Why would they invite us..."

Wei Shao'er wanted to say that if Wei Qing was afraid of implicating his three older sisters, he should keep his distance from them, or even refuse to help them get rid of their citizenship.

Just like how Wei Qing treated his biological father, they became strangers from then on.

Instead of first asking the Marquis of Pingyang for help in removing the person from the register, and then asking the princess to bring the person to her residence.

But Wei Zifu said, "No matter how cold Aqing is to us, if someone wants to use family members against him, they will definitely target us."

Even if slaves were freed from slavery, they would still only be commoners.

Without Princess Yangxin's protection, even if Lü Kuang couldn't deal with Wei Qing, couldn't he at least deal with three commoners?

Anyway, it's just a trivial matter, so let's find a crime to frame them and arrest them.

If we can threaten Wei Qing, that's a bonus; if Wei Qing doesn't fall for it, it doesn't matter.

Someone of Lu Kuang's status, even if he secretly killed a few civilians, would often have the matter dropped without any consequences.

Any more severe punishment would only serve as a minor deterrent, nothing more.

So saying that keeping your distance is completely meaningless.

After hearing her sister's explanation, Wei Shao'er had another question: "Then...then isn't his cutting ties with us just an attempt to cover up the truth?"

Wei Zifu sighed and said, "The saying 'It's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark' is true... But for us, under Your Highness's protection, it is easier to guard against an arrow in the dark, but hard to dodge a spear in the open."

After hearing what Wei Zifu said, Liu Yangxin admired her even more, thinking how intelligent she was.

The moment she saw the little finger left by Wei Qing, she suddenly understood the relationship. Not to mention ordinary people, even a princess like her, who had been by her grandfather and father's side for many years and had been influenced by them, would find it difficult to do this.

Unexpectedly, while her younger brother Wei Qing was a genius, her older sister Wei Zifu was no less so.

Could the Wei family really produce two geniuses?

Thinking to himself, Liu Yangxin also spoke up to explain, "Now that you are living in my residence, if someone wants to arrest you to threaten Zhongqing, they can only do so through legal means. Without sufficient reason and excuse, who would dare to come to my residence to arrest someone?"

After you sever ties with Zhongqing, stay here with me and try to go out as little as possible. Even if Wei Qing causes a great disaster, it won't affect you.

However, if you maintain your sibling relationship, and if Wei Qing causes any major trouble, according to the law's provisions on collective punishment, you will certainly be implicated as well.