147: On the eve of entering Beijing

Over the next few days, Zhou Yan began handling the various matters before his departure from Jiangzhou.

Prefect Qiao's reaction was beyond Zhou Yan's expectations.

He didn't harbor resentment or seek revenge over his brother's death, unlike in typical stories.

Whether it was due to the awareness gained from years of being an official, or if the images left behind by Qiao Wenbin genuinely changed his perspective, the mini-map showed that his attitude had shifted from neutral to friendly.

As for Judge Chen, the crimes he committed were sufficient to warrant beheading.

To Zhou Yan's surprise, the Chen Family was quite poor, even more so than Qiao Wenbin's family, consisting only of the Old Butler and his son.

Zhou Yan couldn't help but sigh.

Judge Chen's family had gained little benefit from his power, yet now they had to suffer the consequences.

The Old Butler was deeply saddened by Judge Chen's death. He didn't excuse the crimes but was simply grieving the loss of the man himself.

Judge Chen's son seemed to have anticipated this outcome and reacted with unusual calm to the impending exile.

Although Zhou Yan felt pity for the two, he still carried out the exile according to the Law, merely choosing a nearby location for the banishment, which counted as showing leniency.

After sending the Chen Family away, the next step was dealing with the Senior whom Zhou Yan quite admired.

After learning about Qian Santong's experiences, Zhou Yan genuinely felt respect for him.

If he hadn't been established as a Reserve Holy Son, he himself might have followed a similar path.

It was just that Qian Santong impersonated a True Disciple, while Zhou Yan originally intended to impersonate a Prodigy.

The difference was that Qian Santong eventually couldn't keep it up, while Zhou Yan, thanks to his cheat, quickly became a genuine Prodigy and no longer needed to pretend.

Facing Zhou Yan and the others, there was no regret in Qian Santong's eyes, only the composure of someone willing to accept defeat.

After days of contemplation, he had managed to find peace of mind.

Initially, he had only embarked on this path reluctantly to satisfy his father, who desperately wished for his son's success.

Now his father had long since passed away, and he had indeed reached a high position, having enjoyed everything there was to enjoy. Thinking about it, there wasn't much left to mourn.

His loss of composure that day was merely due to regret; after years of painstaking effort, surviving great storms, he had capsized in a small stream.

But since he had decided to assume this identity in the first place, he had considered the possibility of disaster.

Now that his scheme had failed, it was actually a form of liberation.

His ending wasn't too bad.

Given that he had indeed made significant contributions to the Great Yu Dynasty, the final verdict was imprisonment within a Secret Realm for several centuries.

Because the flow of time inside the Secret Realm differed from the outside world, only one or two hundred years would pass externally.

At his current age of over two hundred, he would still be a vigorous Nascent Soul cultivator upon release, with a long Lifespan ahead.

Since not too much time would have passed, his support staff would still be largely intact. He might even be able to use this opportunity to return to officialdom. Although he wouldn't enjoy the same prestige as before, he could at least hold office based on his genuine talent and knowledge.

Even if he didn't return to office, his Nascent Soul cultivation was sufficient for him to live out his remaining years peacefully.

In this corrupt officialdom, Qian Santong, relying on his identity as a member of the Sect Faction, managed to avoid much of the filth.

Although he wasn't entirely innocent, his methods of governance were indeed commendable compared to his actual actions.

Had he not encountered the True Disciple, he would have succeeded. He only needed to accumulate more experience and cultivation to be promoted to the Official Fourth Rank, at which point his true identity would no longer matter.

He was only one true identity away from the genuine Peak.

However, on the other hand, without this false identity, he probably would have found it difficult to maintain relative cleanliness in official circles.

Thus, it was a cycle of Karma.

With this matter settled, the officialdom in Jiangzhou was purified.

All parties now knew that Jiangzhou had produced Zhou Yan, a figure holding key positions in the Three Judicial Offices, as well as Wang Yao, the True Disciple of Qingxu Grotto-Heaven.

Therefore, even if Jiangzhou's power structure was reshuffled and interests were reallocated, no one dared to intervene easily.

The final structure of Jiangzhou was as follows.

Prefect Qiao semi-retired, no longer concerning himself with most matters. Affairs within the prefecture were temporarily managed by Li Cheng, the Acting Sub-Prefect.

Due to Li Cheng's outstanding performance in this incident, the imperial court decided to reinstate him. He would return to the capital for an appointment once Jiangzhou stabilized.

Li Shan, due to his remarkable achievements, would be promoted to Jiangzhou Sub-Prefect after Li Cheng's departure, simultaneously taking on the duties of Intendant.

The remaining retired officials temporarily held their original posts, awaiting replacements. They would receive several years of national destiny nourishment, earning a good reputation in addition to their retirement, which was a favorable outcome.

After settling these affairs, Zhou Yan handed the Foundation over to Huo Zhongshan to manage.

Old Huo, serving as his assistant, hadn't participated in major events during his time in Jiangzhou, but he handled all the miscellaneous tasks meticulously.

Furthermore, since he was "family," Zhou Yan felt assured in using him.

After leaving behind enough resources for him to reach Core Formation, Zhou Yan confidently entrusted the Foundation to him.

Huo Zhongshan did not decline.

He had followed Zhou Yan for the sake of his future, and now that he possessed cultivation, wealth, and status, all he needed to do was continue serving faithfully.

Seeing that everything was arranged properly, Zhou Yan prepared to set off for the Capital City.

However, there were still some complications.

The Sect disapproved of him getting involved in the Capital City's disputes, but they did not explicitly object, stating only that they would not participate themselves and would only provide limited personal assistance to Zhou Yan.

Zhou Yan, using the excuse that "someone in the Capital City intends to scheme against me," planned to go there and settle the score.

Although the reason seemed far-fetched, his nominal master did not stop him, essentially giving tacit approval.

Before departing, Zhou Yan originally intended to only bring Yuan Chenling, but Shi Suiyan and the others insisted on following.

Sage Xiao was already out for experience, so following him was reasonable.

Moreover, he had gained a significant amount of Karma from purifying the officialdom this time, and he was so happy that day he even forgot to eat.

Therefore, he planned to continue following Zhou Yan, learning how to acquire Karma while also freeloading meals.

However, Zhou Yan only allowed him to continue following after learning that he possessed a trump card capable of guaranteeing safety below the Soul Transformation realm.

After all, the last time he heard similar words like "below Soul Transformation," it was when he acquired his own trump card.

Although the Dao and Buddhist Sects are now in decline, like the Dynasty, and their prestige has diminished, they are still not entities ordinary forces can challenge.

Through subsequent investigation, Zhou Yan learned that the Kurong Temple, where Sage Xiao resided, was the current Dao Sect Leader, and its status in the Southern Desert was second only to Liyan Holy Land, one of the Three Sects.

As a top force with a long Legacy, the trump card he produced should not be much inferior to Zhou Yan's.

However, when mentioning the trump card, Sage Xiao still seemed a bit embarrassed, though Zhou Yan didn't know why.

Returning to Wang Yao and Shi Suiyan, they originally followed Zhou Yan because the mission duration was long and they didn't want to go to Longmen Town.

Having been busy for nearly a month, the timing for their return was now perfect.

But they guessed that Zhou Yan's trip to the Capital City would involve major actions, so they all decided to accompany him. No amount of persuasion from Zhou Yan worked, and he had no choice but to bring them along.

In truth, Zhou Yan didn't want them getting involved in this mess, especially Wang Yao.

Zhou Yan had only just escaped the covetous gaze of most people, and adding Wang Yao felt like the disadvantages outweighed the benefits.

Unlike Zhou Yan, whose identity was only known to the higher-ups, Wang Yao, as a True Disciple of Qingxu Grotto-Heaven, was famous throughout Great Yu.

Who knew what schemes those major forces might have planned using Wang Yao?

Regarding the Lianxing Pavilion and the Joyous Union Sect, Zhou Yan had clarified their attitudes after several interactions.

The Lianxing Pavilion Headquarters, due to Hui Butan's report, had stated that they would not harbor improper intentions toward Zhou Yan during his period of experience; they simply wanted to conduct their business peacefully.

The current person in charge of the Joyous Union Sect in the Capital City is Meng Ke and Good Brother.

There was naturally nothing to worry about with Good Brother; the two shared a life-and-death friendship, and besides, he couldn't defeat Zhou Yan.

As for Meng Ke, Zhou Yan no longer feared her.

After experiencing the power of Law, he was more confident in the Sword Seal. Furthermore, since he only used one last time, he still had two left.

If Meng Ke dared to cause trouble again, if one set of Zhou Yans Marvelous Array couldn't solve it, he would follow up with a sword strike.

Anyway, Zhou Yan wasn't short on money now, and since the Top-Grade Spirit Stone couldn't be removed, not using it would be a waste.

Since they barely dared to touch Zhou Yan anymore, the exposed Wang Yao was going to suffer greatly.

The title of "naïve sweetheart"—someone with high status but low strength—had been removed from Zhou Yan's head and passed onto Wang Yao.

He probably wouldn't be in danger, but he certainly wouldn't encounter few incidents. The specifics would likely mirror Zhou Yan's own experience upon first arriving in Jiangzhou.

With all arrangements made, Zhou Yan planned to use the Teleportation Array between prefectures to travel directly to a prefecture near the Capital City.

On the eve of his departure, he received a familiar invitation.

Looking at the pink, somewhat improper invitation card, Zhou Yan knew exactly who was behind it.

Invitation to Lord Zhou

To Lord Zhou:

Recently, the misty rain in Jiangnan has just ceased. Painted barges glide over the lake's waves, and the scent of lotuses drifts on the breeze, making it a perfect setting for refined conversation.

I have long heard that your Lordship possesses profound expertise in the Dao of poetry. Today, I have a matter to discuss: the poetry drafts concern the etiquette of entering the Capital, and I require your Lordship's guidance to ensure they are appropriate.

I plan to prepare light tea tomorrow during the Hour of the Dragon hour aboard the Misty Rain Painted Barge, hoping to sit with your Lordship to discuss poetry and related matters concerning the entry into the Capital. If you would honor us with your presence, I, Mei Mou, would be deeply honored.

I hereby extend this exclusive invitation and await your reply.

Mei Mou bows his head.

Zhou Yan's eye twitched slightly as he read it.

Wasn't his punch at the last Poetry Gathering stunning enough? They still want to talk about poetry?

Thus, this letter was clearly a direct template, and they were too lazy to even change the wording.

However, when he noticed that the words "entering the Capital" were not written with ink but condensed from spiritual energy, he frowned.

Stranger still, after he finished reading the letter, the words "entering the Capital" gradually transformed into "Hongjian."

The original phrase "etiquette of entering the Capital" became "etiquette of Hongjian," and the entire meaning of the letter changed accordingly, as if it were saying:

They had written several poems flattering him and wanted Zhou Yan to review them so they could boast about it.