Chapter 84 Gathering

"Your Highness." A neatly dressed elder approached Princess Yuzhen to pay his respects.

"Revered Master Cheng, please, there is no need for such formalities."

At this moment, behind the elder addressed as Revered Master Cheng, there was a young man who was looking at Jiang Chen with a touch of malice.

However, Jiang Chen merely glanced at him before withdrawing his gaze to look out over the surface of Taiye Pool.

Taiye Pool was truly worthy of being a royal garden; the Heaven And Earth Spiritual Essence here was far superior to that outside, almost comparable to the Maoshan Sect.

Moreover, there seemed to be many spiritual items in the pool, and Jiang Chen felt a slight tinge of regret.

If he could go down and fish some out, what a wonderful thing that would be.

"Your Highness, who is this?"

Su Baiwei was dressed as a zither player, so she naturally did not garner much attention from people of their status, though they did glance at her a few times due to her extraordinary appearance and temperament.

Cheng Boxian was asking about Jiang Chen. Since he had arrived with Princess Yuzhen and did not appear to be a staff member or a guest of the Princess, his identity was clearly significant.

Now that the Cheng Family no longer possessed their former influence, he had to set aside his pride to build alliances.

"This is my Junior Brother, and the youngest Disciple of my Revered Master, the Grand Master Sima Chengzhen."

Jiang Chen finished admiring the lotus flowers, turned around, and said, "Your Highness, please do not joke. Revered Master has never accepted you as a Disciple, so addressing one another as siblings is truly inappropriate."

If it were any other time, he might have let it pass, but today there were too many people around. If he did not refute it, he feared the world would take it as tacit agreement.

One must know that he was the Personal Disciple of Grand Master Sima Chengzhen; in a sense, his attitude could represent a portion of his Revered Master's own stance.

Princess Yuzhen smiled and said nothing, her beauty instantly overshadowing the entire lotus pond, causing Cheng Ji, who was standing behind Cheng Boxian, to be momentarily dazed.

Cheng Boxian observed their expressions and saw that they did not seem to be at odds with each other.

"So you are a Disciple of the Maoshan Sect. Please forgive this old man's poor eyesight just now."

Jiang Chen also slightly bowed to Cheng Boxian, not out of respect for his official rank, but because of his seniority.

"Daoist Priest Jiang is the same age as my son, and since you are both practitioners, I am sure you have much to talk about."

Cheng Boxian had brought Cheng Ji today because he heard that the daughter of the Protector-General Zhang Family was also coming, which was why he brought him along.

Jiang Chen said with a smile that wasn't quite a smile, "Your son and I did indeed have an in-depth exchange earlier."

"Oh?" Cheng Boxian turned around in surprise. Could it be that his rebellious son had actually done something good for the Family?

If he could befriend a Disciple of the Maoshan Sect head, the benefits would be infinite; this would be a friendship that could last for generations.

However, when Cheng Boxian saw the flushed, almost distorted and ferocious expression on his son's Face, he keenly sensed that things might not be as he had thought.

Cheng Boxian couldn't help but recall that a few days ago, his son had returned clutching his ear, covered in blood. It had shocked him so much that he immediately went to find His Majesty and begged for an imperial physician to come and treat his son's ear.

Later, when he asked about the cause, Cheng Ji claimed that a thieving Daoist had no regard for the law and was harassing a respectable woman in broad daylight, so he had stepped in to stop him.

But he hadn't expected that the thieving Daoist would strike first. Having been ambushed and unable to dodge, he had lost an ear.

However, he later fought three hundred rounds with the thieving Daoist, and the Daoist, unable to win, had fled in defeat.

At the time, Cheng Boxian had been skeptical, because he knew what kind of character his son had.

If someone were harassing a respectable woman, it would be a blessing if he didn't join in, let alone earn the title of a demon on the road.

Because of these sordid matters, his father, Cheng Chubi, had had to swallow his pride and beg the Saint for mercy in the palace several times.

How could he possibly be upholding justice this time?

Yet when Cheng Boxian had pressed for the specific details, his son had stammered and couldn't give a straight answer.

Thus, Cheng Boxian hadn't pressed further, but instead sent people to investigate what had happened that day.

Now it seemed that the "thieving Daoist" in Cheng Ji's story was Jiang Chen?

Then, all that talk about forcibly seizing a woman was likely complete fabrication?

For a moment, Cheng Boxian felt his temples throbbing and his head buzzing.

"You beast! You cause trouble all day long, and you even dare to deceive me!"

"Father!" Cheng Ji was incredulous. It was one thing for his father not to protect him, but to scold him in front of so many people made it even more embarrassing for him.

Cheng Boxian had not controlled his voice, and this angry rebuke drew the attention of many people.

On the other side, Zhang Lingyi, who was idling with a group of noblewomen and listening to their gossip, heard the commotion and instinctively looked over.

When she saw Jiang Chen, her eyes lit up.

"What a handsome young man, I wonder which Family's Young Master he is?"

Other noblewomen also noticed, and naturally, their focus was almost entirely on Jiang Chen.

"Didn't you see his Daoist robes? He is likely a monk from some Daoist temple, so don't get your hopes up."

"So what if he's a Daoist? Daoists can marry and have children too..."

On the other side, Cheng Ji left in a huff.

Cheng Boxian, having lost all Face, bowed to Princess Yuzhen: "Your Highness, I am old and tired, so I will excuse myself to the side."

"Revered Master Cheng, please go rest; do not overexert yourself."

After Cheng Boxian left, Princess Yuzhen gave Jiang Chen a reproachful look: "Junior Brother, you certainly know how to stir up trouble. Do you know that Revered Master Cheng is a descendant of the Duke of Lu, and even His Majesty has to give him some Face on a daily basis?"

Then Jiang Chen heard her continue: "However, Revered Master Cheng's son, Cheng Ji, is truly hopeless. Even at Yuzhen Taoist Temple, I often hear of his notoriety. If it weren't for my Imperial Brother remembering the merits of the Cheng Family ancestors, how could he allow him to act like this?"

Jiang Chen smiled and said nothing. For an emperor, seeing the descendants of his subjects being hopeless was likely the most reassuring thing. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang probably wished for Cheng Ji to continue acting this way, as long as it didn't cause too much trouble.

The invited guests had almost all arrived, including the Nestorianism Revered Master and Disciple, the Vinaya School Revered Master and Disciple, Master Chengjue of Pure Land Temple, the Jingming Sect Revered Master and Disciple, as well as Disciples from Mount Longhu, and monks from Tibet and India, Vajrabodhi and Subhakarasimha.

In addition, there was the envoy from Japan, Abe no Nakamaro, also known by his changed name, Abe no Nakamaro.

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, in order to display the grandeur of the Celestial Empire, had invited almost all the foreign envoys in Chang'an.

Abe no Nakamaro sat quietly in the area reserved for foreign envoys.

Among them, Vajrabodhi and Subhakarasimha had the most prominent seats, while Abe no Nakamaro was seated in the middle.

However, there was no dissatisfaction in his eyes, because only by coming to the land of the Great Tang could one appreciate its prosperity and power.

Only by constantly becoming stronger could one have the confidence to speak with the Great Tang.

Abe no Nakamaro looked at the wine flask at his waist, a confident smile playing on his lips.

Now that everyone was seated, they only awaited the arrival of the current Tang Emperor.

During this time, everyone was observing each other, and Jiang Chen noticed that more than one gaze was frequently sweeping toward him.