People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

"With your heart pounding, isn't that just like a restless monkey?"

Cao Ze casually explained, and continued, "The Qi of the liver and kidneys belongs to Yin Qi, which is inherently in conflict with Yang Qi. In addition, as an assassin, you are constantly forced to kill, which makes it difficult for you to control your emotions and desires. Therefore, the Qi of your liver and kidneys is hard to obey you."

Jingni frowned, deep in thought; she didn't understand many of the new things.

"Then how do we control it?"

Cao Ze sighed, "The seven emotions and six desires encompass countless things; how can they be easily controlled?"

He hasn't fully mastered the Five Elements yet; this has little to do with strength, it's just a state of mind.

In layman's terms, this is easy to say but extremely difficult to do; everyone understands the big picture, right?

"To control the Qi of the liver and kidneys, you must first understand what you can and cannot do."

"can?"

"Yes, that's the key. You need to understand the word 'ability' so that you can control the Qi of the liver and kidneys."

Jingni asked, bewildered, "How do I comprehend it?"

No wonder there are so few grandmasters; they're just too ethereal and unattainable.

Cao Ze shrugged and said, "The master leads you through the door, but the cultivation is up to you."

He gently touched Jingni's slightly protruding belly. "Wuneng, Wuneng, if you want to understand 'ability,' you can first study the seven emotions and six desires. For example... tonight, warm the bed for your husband, and we'll study it together~"

Jingni slapped away Cao Ze's restless hand and said, "What you said is no different from the rumors in the martial arts world. You still need to enlighten yourself."

Cao Ze grinned, chuckling. Jing Ni didn't seem to realize he was calling her "piggy."

“Who says there’s no difference? Come, come, let me tell you a story.”

"What story?"

Journey to the West.

Cao Ze casually began to talk about the most popular and meaningful story in modern times, "Journey to the West".

On Longhu Mountain, or rather, among the Taoist disciples who cultivate both body and mind, there are very few who haven't read this. It is a popular book written by the patriarch for his disciples to improve their realm, broaden their thinking, and enlighten their wisdom.

During the two and a half years he practiced at Longhu Mountain, he read all the versions of Journey to the West, such as "The Original Meaning of Journey to the West", "The Book of Proving the Dao in Journey to the West", and "The Story of Expelling Calamities in Journey to the West", and most of them were read more than ten times.

It was no difficulty at all to tell Jingni the story.

For some reason, neither Hu Ji nor Manyu came today, so Cao Ze was happy to have some free time and began to act as Jing Ni's teacher for a day.

The difference lies in the balance of offense and defense. This time, Jingni obediently became a student, listening to his lectures, which was incredibly enjoyable. No wonder some people like to act like teachers, acting all paternalistic.

The addiction of Ming Dynasty history expert Secretary Gao is something only those who have tried it know.

It's a bit of a hassle to talk to; after telling the story, I have to explain many things to Jingni one by one.

However, this is a good opportunity for me to review.

In just half a day, Cao Ze himself had made considerable progress.

For example, many of the detailed words and phrases were things he hadn't really thought about in detail if Jingni hadn't asked him. These things seemed simple and easy to understand.

It can be described as a cognitive bias; one thinks they understand, but in reality, they only have a superficial understanding.

I'm so ashamed~

Five days passed in the blink of an eye, and the weather worsened. Water froze instantly, and the biting wind was nothing compared to the cold.

After the heavy snowfall, the snow on the grassland was already up to a person's chest.

Cao Ze was cozy in his little house, enjoying the winter.

After telling Jingni the most popular story of "Journey to the West", he also gave her a crash course in Taoist knowledge and taught her meditation exercises to better cultivate her spirit.

Although it's icing on the cake, I still hope that Jing Ni can break through to the Grandmaster level soon so that I can live off the wealth of becoming a powerful man's wife.

After all, being able to cultivate to the point of being a half-step Grandmaster means that Jing Ni already possesses the basic conditions to become a Grandmaster; she just needs an opportunity.

After listening to Cao Ze's account of Journey to the West, Jing Ni also learned what Cao Ze meant when he said he was Wu Neng that day, but she was not angry.

She does seem to be a pig; as an assassin, she doesn't know the precepts and repeatedly breaks the precept against killing, which causes her to generate a lot of uncontrollable liver and kidney qi without realizing it.

No wonder the Luo Wang has no master-level assassins to this day, and it's almost impossible for them to have any.

Fortunately, she woke up to the truth after Cao Ze's guidance and did not continue to sink into depravity; otherwise, she would never have been able to break through to the Grandmaster realm.

Now, her intuition tells her that if she can really easily control the five energies in her chest, she might actually be able to break through to the Grandmaster realm.

Jingni gently touched her increasingly protruding belly.

If possible, she hopes to have the ability to protect her child for the rest of her life after the child is born.

While Cao Ze and Jing Ni were enjoying a cozy moment alone, Hu Ji arrived at Cao Ze's courtyard somewhat disheveled.

Looking at the flustered Hu Ji, Cao Ze felt a sense of foreboding, even more panicked than a few months ago when an army of 100,000 was besieging the city.

"Your Highness, what's wrong...?"

The woman, her voice trembling with tears, pleaded, "Sir, please, please find a way to save my sisters!"

Cao Ze was dumbfounded. What the hell?

He quickly gave Jingni a wink, and Jingni shook her head, indicating that no one was outside.

Cao Ze patiently asked, "Your Highness, don't panic. What happened?"

The woman, her eyes red, cried out, "My...my father is dead..."

Jing Ni and Cao Ze both changed color at the same time.

Chapter 17 Who's in favor, who's opposed?

Cao Ze could hardly describe his feelings.

I strongly suspect that this old man is trying to make things difficult for himself.

Why did I have to die at this time of all times?!

"Your Highness, how did the Wolf King die?"

Cao Ze quickly asked.

Hu Ji sobbed, her eyes brimming with tears, her voice choked with sobs: "The weather has been getting worse these past few days, and my father caught a cold. Who would have thought he would suddenly fall seriously ill and leave us in the middle of the night?"

Cao Ze breathed a slight sigh of relief; it was good that it wasn't someone from the Luo Wang organization who killed him.

No wonder I haven't seen Manyu and Hu Ji these past few days, they've been coming to him to listen to his lectures.

But soon, Cao Ze realized a problem.

The wolf king is dead. Given Hu Ji's cunning, why isn't she seizing power and taking the throne instead of coming to him to cry?

Just as Cao Ze felt a sense of foreboding, he heard Hu Ji say, trembling slightly, "The Left...the Left Prime Minister learned of my father's death and in the middle of the night led a rebellion. He bribed my father's close attendants and imprisoned my sister. I escaped in the chaos. Please, sir, save me and my sister!"

Hu Ji gripped Cao Ze's arm tightly, her eyes filled with anticipation.

If anyone could save her now, it would be Cao Ze.

A few months ago, Cao Ze killed An Lulu, the number one warrior of the grassland, with a single sword strike, which shows that his strength must be much greater than that of his father's personal attendant.

Cao Ze frowned deeply.

This wolf king is simply exceptional!

Let's not even mention the betrayal of General Zuo, who was once the most trusted general, who took 30,000 men with him.

Damn it, he just died, and his own Left Prime Minister rebelled and imprisoned the princess. There's no one else like him!

"Alright, alright, stop crying!"

Cao Ze reached out and wiped Hu Ji's almost tear-streaked face, saying impatiently, "Is that Left Prime Minister still in the palace?"

Hu Ji, not bothering to tidy up her face which Cao Ze had smeared, hurriedly said, "He's still here. He's leading people to eliminate dissidents."

"how many people?"

"Less than two hundred people."

Cao Ze immediately said, "Jing Ni, let's go!"

Throughout history, palace coups have always been characterized by their swiftness and efficiency.

At this critical moment, it is absolutely crucial not to allow the Left Chancellor to seize power.

Otherwise, he and Jingni would be put in a passive and dangerous situation.

The best course of action now is to act decisively and support either Hu Ji or Manyu to ascend the throne, allowing him and Jing Ni to remain in the royal court until the snow melts on the grasslands and they unite to attack Qin.

Jing Ni had already put on her combat suit when Cao Ze gave the order.

He gave Hu Ji a cold look.

If we're talking about the person who caused such a dramatic change in her life, it was Hu Ji.

She had just entered the palace disguised as a palace maid when she was chosen by Hu Ji and given to Cao Ze.

I don't feel any hatred, nor any gratitude; I just feel that the world is somewhat mysterious.

Perhaps this is what Cao Ze meant when he said it was fate between them.

Upon seeing Jing Ni, who was wielding a long sword and exuding murderous intent, Hu Ji was astonished.

He wanted to say something, but swallowed hard, and was then pulled forward by Cao Ze.

"lead the way!"

……

The world outside was a blanket of silver.

Screams could be heard from time to time within the palace.

A significant amount of snow could be clearly seen, stained red with blood, turning into tiny, blood-red ice crystals that were occasionally stirred up by the cold wind.

Jing Ni led the way, and one wolf guard after another fell beside Cao Ze and Hu Ji.

This was the first time Cao Ze had seen Jing Ni unleash her full power; her swordsmanship was cunning and ruthless, each strike resulting in a fatality.

Hu Ji, who was following behind Jing Ni, would occasionally shrink back, thinking about how she had made Jing Ni have a child for Cao Ze. She couldn't help but feel a chill run down her spine. She never imagined that this person was such a jinx.