The First Lackey Under The Empress

"Enter," Zhao Du'an said softly, collecting his thoughts.

The door creaked open. Outside, his stepmother, wrapped in a windbreaker, held a red lantern in her hand. Curly strands of hair fell across her forehead as she looked at him and said softly, "I didn't want to disturb you, but your auntie noticed you hadn't eaten since you came back... so she ordered the cook to make chicken soup."

Zhao Du'an got out of bed, cut off his complicated thoughts, and smiled, "Where's the chicken soup? I'm actually hungry."

A moment later.

In the dining hall, Zhao Du'an sat upright in the main seat, holding a spoon, taking a sip of the soup, and then scooping up the tender, flavorful stewed chicken, eating heartily.

Beside him, You Jinhua watched with a look of relief, "Eat slowly, there's more in the kitchen."

After Zhao Du'an began cultivating, his appetite rivaled that of the Empress, but fortunately, the Zhao family was now large and wealthy enough that it wouldn't be ruined by his eating.

You Jinhua was used to ordering the kitchen to keep food prepared at all times for Da Lang to eat.

After eating three pots in one go, Zhao Du'an finally felt his hunger subside and asked, "Did anyone come looking for me this afternoon?"

You Jinhua nodded and said, "Your subordinates from the yamen came over and said that Supervisor Ma has already taken responsibility for handling the aftermath, so you don't need to worry about this matter anymore."

Hmm... Senior Brother is still responsible after all... Zhao Du'an nodded.

"Anything else?"

You Jinhua added, "A little eunuch also came and said that you don't need to go to the teahouse tomorrow, just wait at home."

Waiting?

What kind of training does Eunuch Hai want to do this time...? Zhao Du'an thought to himself, wondering if he could tell Hai Gongfeng about his doubts tomorrow.

"Da Lang, is something bothering you?"

You Jinhua, skilled at reading expressions, asked with a bite on her lip.

"It's nothing, just my martial arts realm, I can't find the key to breaking through," Zhao Du'an said as he ate.

Immediately, he felt that it was unnecessary to talk to You Jinhua about such topics, so he got up, wiped his mouth clean, and said, "It's just cultivation matters, Auntie doesn't need to worry, I'm going back to rest."

Feeling mentally exhausted, he just wanted to get a good night's sleep.

Speaking of which, it was strange that he didn't feel tired after visualizing all night in the palace, probably because the Empress was helping him regulate his energy.

It could only be said that the old saying "Men and women working together get the job done easily" still held true.

You Jinhua watched her stepson return to his room, hesitant to speak. She always felt that fighting and killing were too dangerous, and it would be better to be a stable official.

On the other side, Zhao Du'an walked along the corridor to the door of his room, but suddenly stopped.

Using the dim light from the lanterns hanging under the eaves, he looked at the fine rain swaying outside.

He saw a tree in the courtyard, and suddenly a wet leaf fell from it.

He suddenly reached out, flicked his finger, and sent a falling raindrop towards the falling leaf.

"Pa."

The raindrop shattered, and the leaf tumbled and fell into a puddle on the ground.

"It really doesn't work..."

He sighed softly, turned back to his room, and fell asleep.

...

The night passed without incident, and the next morning.

The rain had stopped today, but the sky above the capital was still not clear.

Only a few pale rays of sunlight shone through the cracks in the clouds.

After Zhao Du'an finished eating, he practiced his fist techniques in the courtyard for a while. The gatekeeper came to report that an old man was looking for him outside.

"Hai Gongfeng, why have you come in person?"

Zhao Du'an walked out of the gate, putting on a flattered appearance.

The old eunuch, still dressed as a wealthy old man, turned and walked away with his hands behind his back, "Don't talk nonsense, follow this old one. Heh heh, we're not going to watch the fighting today, I'm taking you out for a walk to relax."

Relax?

I don't have the interest to relax with a eunuch... Zhao Du'an complained, but a flattering smile plastered on his face as he followed closely behind.

"How is it? What insights did you gain from yesterday's cultivation?" Old Hai asked casually as they walked down the street.

Zhao Du'an said solemnly, "I was just about to ask you, Gonggong. Yesterday, I vaguely felt something, but when I entered visualization, it disappeared without a trace..."

"That's normal, heh, it means you've touched the edge, but you're still a bit short of crossing that threshold,"

The old eunuch wasn't surprised, "Martial God Diagram, have you reached Martial Emperor City? Did you see the Grand Ancestor attacking the mountain?"

Zhao Du'an honestly said, "I saw it."

He then briefly described his experience in the Martial God Diagram, following the Grand Ancestor into Green Mountain Town, and seeing the Grand Ancestor climb the mountain again and again, failing again and again.

"Not bad, faster than this old one expected. Well, it's not surprising, you used His Majesty's seed, and the energy in your body has expanded, your cultivation has risen, and correspondingly, the progress in the Martial God Diagram will also jump and accelerate."

Hai Gonggong casually revealed important information.

So, the progress of the Martial God Diagram is not fixed... but interacts with the physical body? Zhao Du'an was stunned.

He had previously worried whether he was cultivating the Martial God Diagram too quickly, arousing suspicion.

But now it seemed he was overthinking it.

"May I ask you, Gonggong, is what is recorded in the Martial God Diagram... real? Did the Grand Ancestor Emperor really go to Green Mountain when he was young and..."

Hai Gonggong nodded, glanced at him, and smiled, "Of course it's real, otherwise, how do you think the Grand Ancestor Emperor was able to combine martial arts and magic?

Naturally, he had to deeply understand both. The Grand Ancestor Emperor was not a genius who sprang from a stone.

That heaven-reaching cultivation was also learned and practiced step by step, punch by punch. What's so strange about being defeated when he was young?"

He spoke with a tone of instructing a junior.

"The Grand Ancestor's strength lies not in being undefeated, but in that heart of a king.

When he was young, he measured the Nine Provinces with his own feet, traversing deserts and snowfields. Along the way, whenever he encountered a strong person, he would go to ask for advice. It can be said that he was defeated all the way.

It was precisely because he was defeated by people with different inheritances and methods that he had the accumulation to create the 'Martial God' cultivation method."

Zhao Du'an was stunned and said in confusion, "The Grand Ancestor Emperor was defeated all the way? But in the Martial God Diagram, I didn't see..."

Hai Gonggong smiled and said, "The Martial God Diagram does contain the history that once happened, but this old one never said that it was the entire history. You went in, but only took a fleeting glance. Did you really think you experienced it completely?"

In other words, what Old Xu left in the Martial God Diagram was a "edited" documentary, right...?

He cut out all the parts where he was beaten in the middle... leaving only the scenes where he won and showed off...

No wonder he was always in a strong posture all the way from the desert to the East Sea... until he entered Martial Emperor City and was suddenly beaten into a pig's head...

Zhao Du'an had nowhere to vent his complaints.

Old Xu, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, was also a pervert!

Hai Gonggong continued, "Unlike the mages who only sweep the snow in front of their own doors, martial artists must spar and fight to become stronger.

People from Martial Emperor City will go everywhere to find strong people to fight.

At the same time, that Green Mountain standing on the coast of the East Sea has also repeatedly accepted challenges from martial artists all over the world for thousands of years. This is the tradition of martial artists.

Therefore, even if Chai Keqiao came to the door, His Majesty could not convict him according to the law. Just like the Grand Ancestor Emperor made a big name in Green Mountain, the strong men on the mountain would not bully the weak.

Therefore, during the conflict between Buddhism and Taoism, weapons were not prohibited in the city, allowing people from all over the country to kill each other in the capital.

Therefore, even if Chai Keqiao was besieged by strong men in the military, as long as the Worldly Realm did not take action, it would not be breaking the rules."

Zhao Du'an was stunned, realizing that the old eunuch was subtly reminding him.

The tradition of martial artists...

At this moment, he had a deeper understanding of the two challenges yesterday.

That was a kind of "jianghu rule" that seemed pedantic and inexplicable to him, but had maintained the prosperity of martial arts for thousands of years.

At this time, the two came to the outside of a tavern.

They heard a group of foreign martial artists inside drinking and eating meat, chatting and talking.

Zhao Du'an immediately noticed that one of them was the third-rate swordsman who had lost on the "ring" outside the teahouse yesterday.

The other person's wounds were still bandaged, but he was still holding his sword and drinking silently.

Opposite him, an older swordsman came over, snatched the wine bowl, and scolded, "So what if you were defeated? Has it made you so depressed? Don't you know that you should rest and abstain from alcohol while healing?"

The young swordsman looked dejected and said bitterly, "Master, I have cultivated hard for so many years, but I still can't beat him. Now that I've injured my bones, it will be difficult in the future..."

The old swordsman tore open his clothes, showing the hideous scars on his chest, and cursed, "Bullshit! Your teacher was almost cut in half back then, so what?

I ran to the snowy plains and cut for ten years, honed for ten years, while your teacher's nemesis was soaking in the gentle countryside of Jiangnan, enjoying himself for ten years.

When we met again, didn't I still kill him?

You're so depressed by this little failure, what kind of sword are you learning?

What kind of martial arts are you practicing? Bah!"

He turned and left, leaving the young swordsman stunned and lost in thought.

"Let's go."

Hai Gonggong said calmly, leading the equally stunned Zhao Du'an away from the tavern.

Next, the two walked through the crowd.

Every time they stopped, they could witness some jianghu martial artists who were weak but tenacious.

In the past, such scenes were difficult to find.

But in the current conflict between Buddhism and Taoism, there were too many similar scenes in the capital.

Zhao Du'an saw a swordsman hiding in an alley, crying with his head in his hands.

When a stray dog saw him, he instantly stopped crying and bared his fangs.

He saw a jianghu person with a limp, punching the air again and again, with a firm will in his eyes.

He saw a female knight in the jianghu being teased, pulling out a dagger and chasing after the person to chop him all the way. Even when she encountered an official, her fierceness did not diminish in the slightest.

Unconsciously, the two came to the outside of a dilapidated courtyard in an alley.

This was a small martial arts gym, and a group of young martial arts students were practicing horse stance in the courtyard, with stone locks hanging on their arms.

An old man stood with his hands behind his back, holding a bamboo pole, and occasionally whipped it out, leaving bloody marks on the bare backs of the young men.

The old man said coldly, "When learning martial arts, what is the most important thing? Physique? Aptitude? Whether your family has money? Or secret manuals and techniques? None of that is important!

The most important thing is the heart, the heart of a martial artist!

If you have nothing to fear, you dare to throw a punch even when facing a tiger! Even if you lose, you will never give up, never dodge, never avoid!

You must also have a brain. A reckless man without a brain will not achieve great success!

But if you only have a brain, if your brain is too good, you won't accomplish anything either! If you're cunning and slippery, and you lose the heart of not dodging or avoiding, you're half-finished! Did you hear that!"

The young martial arts students in the courtyard kept their mouths shut, not daring to let out a breath.

Suddenly, the old boxing instructor of the martial arts gym turned his head and looked towards the gate of the courtyard.

When he saw Hai Gonggong outside the door, his expression changed, and he was about to respectfully salute.

Hai Gonggong shook his head, and the old man stopped his movements.

"Let's go."

Hai Gongfeng turned around and said lightly.

But Zhao Du'an stood still, his eyes becoming brighter and brighter. A clear understanding shone in his eyes, and he suddenly said, "Gonggong, let's stop here today."

The python-robed old eunuch smiled, "Alright."

Zhao Du'an turned his head, spurred his horse, and hurried home.

...

Back at the Zhao family, Zhao Du'an pushed open the door of his study.

He knew that he had grasped the key inspiration.