Chapter 58: Spirit Turtle

What a fine auspicious omen!

Zhang Jian glanced at it once, and instantly a hint of surprise appeared in his eyes.

Zhang Jian could still tell turtles from soft-shelled turtles apart: one has a hard shell, the other a soft shell.

Soft-shelled turtles are also called 'wang ba'.

What lay before him was a rare large turtle, its whole body a white jade colour; such creatures are commonly called auspicious omens in folk tradition, whether presented as a longevity gift or offered to the court, they are treated with honour.

Yet this white jade turtle before him was extraordinary; Zhang Jian could see threads of moist spiritual energy flowing around its body, which ought to count as some kind of minor spirit.

Within the Myriad Worlds Spirit Awareness Ball deep in Zhang Jian's mind, he could now hear a child wailing, mixed with fear and worry.

"A white jade spirit turtle?"

At this moment many passersby were bidding, the price having shot up from a few strings to dozens of strings.

Zhang Jian glanced at the spirit turtle, thought a moment, and then spoke directly.

"Three hundred strings of copper cash!"

He spoke up on his own, and the surrounding passersby all turned their gazes over, each looking displeased.

The old fisherman's eyes lit up at those words.

"This young lord bids three hundred strings; any higher? If not, this great white turtle belongs to this young lord!"

Many passersby nearby wanted to compete, and indeed quite a few were servants sent from the mansions of officials and nobles to purchase provisions, yet throwing down such a sum of copper cash was still beyond their means.

At that moment a few people stepped forward, trying to reveal their backgrounds and negotiate with Zhang Jian, but he simply refused them.

At the same time Zhang Jian took out a visiting card from the Qi mansion and handed it to the old fisherman, saying: "This is the name card of the Qi family of Changling Street; it bears my name. You can present it at the Qi mansion to withdraw three hundred strings of copper cash."

"Of course, if you don't trust me, you can come with me directly to a nearby money shop to withdraw the funds."

Upon hearing it was the Qi family of Changling Street, the old fisherman's face turned solemn, and he hurriedly said: "I trust it; I still trust the old General Qi!"

The stewards of several wealthy households nearby, who had originally intended to cause trouble, upon hearing it was the Qi family of the Third-rank Wei Yuan General's mansion, could only lower their banners and stop their fuss, abandoning any thought of contention, merely able to envy the scene.

Although limited by authority and vision, they also knew this white jade spirit turtle must be of great value; if they could bring it back, they would surely gain great recognition.

The old fisherman at this moment reverently put away that luxurious name card, stepped forward earnestly and said: "Young lord, do you need this old man to help you carry it back to the Qi mansion?"

Zhang Jian lifted the hemp-fibre fishing net and laughed: "No need for that; this creature is so delicately spirited that eating it would be a waste—better to set it free."

"Heaven cherishes life!"

Those nearby hearing this all felt it a pity; the old fisherman too felt it a pity, but since it had been sold, what use it would be was no longer his concern, so he merely laughed.

"It is the young lord's compassionate heart, truly a bodhisattva's disposition!"

The white jade spirit turtle in the net seemed to understand it had saved its little life, slowly poked its head out, its eyes bright and clear as it gazed at Zhang Jian, and he heard a soft 'ee-ya' of thanks in his ear.

Thereupon he rose straight away, walked to the riverbank behind, casually tore the fine net, and flung the white jade turtle into the rushing white water.

Zhang Jian watched the white jade turtle sink into the water and disappear, then gave a faint smile.

Actually, given the Zhang family's current standing, if they kept this turtle and then passed it on to Sixth Uncle Zhang Duan to submit to the court, they could hardly fail to gain some advantage.

But that would be too troublesome, and moreover likely to invite covetousness.

Zhang Jian simply released it outright, which also counted as fulfilling his own wish.

May my thoughts flow unimpeded.

Afterwards Zhang Jian turned and vanished into the crowd.

But after he left the human realm, the riverbank suddenly erupted with cries, and lo! the depths of the White Water River burst forth with raging waves and surging billows.

Everyone said, "Where there is no wind, waves must be caused by a monster."

The fish market and crowds by the riverbank scattered swiftly.

Yet those with keen sight, in the vast depths of the White Water River, seemed to see a mountain‑sized shape moving, shaking the heart.

The news spread like wildfire.

When Zhang Jian finished dealing with the gold and silver ingots bought by Hu Shan and the others and returned to the Qi mansion, he could hear the surrounding folk discussing it.

Not long after Zhang Jian returned to his small courtyard, Qi Yi and Daoist Tianxu arrived together, their purpose being the disturbance that had occurred around the Qi mansion the previous night.

Zhang Jian did not conceal anything either.

"How can the prefect's command have gathered so many strange and extraordinary people?"

Qi Yi hearing this immediately felt a headache; these strange and extraordinary folk, when facing off directly, are of little use—indeed they might not match a charge of hundreds of soldiers, a volley of nine‑pearl repeating crossbows, or even a sweep of cinnabar‑piercing armor crossbows—but for assassination they are exceedingly formidable.

"Maternal grandfather, there's no need to worry; the Qi mansion is a Third‑rank Wei Yuan General's manor, under the protection of the court's sacred vessels, evil men dare not lightly encroach; as for the several uncles who hold official posts, as long as we are careful and assign more guards, there is no problem."

"For now, this is all we can do."

Qi Yi nodded.

Qi Yi sighed a little; nowadays the great clans of the prefectural city are all busy contending with the prefect for power and profit, checking each other, and this life truly presses upon him.

Zhang Jian felt a stir in his heart, turned his gaze to Daoist Tianxu, and said:

"Senior Tianxu, how much do you know about the divine‑path power within Fengyang Prefecture?"

Daoist Tianxu's expression shifted upon hearing this: "The divine path?"

He gazed at Zhang Jian with surprise, then after a moment said: "As a humble Daoist, I only know that within the prefectural city there is the Prefectural City Emperor, and that the White Water River once housed the White Water God Office; the divine path stresses strict rules, and they normally do not meddle in worldly affairs unless it concerns the yin‑yang realms."

Zhang Jian nodded at these words, his pupils flickering slightly.

"Senior Tianxu, do you know how to restrain a deity's nature?"

Upon hearing this, Daoist Tianxu startled, his eyes widening as he stared at the young man before him, unable to refrain from speaking.

"Zhang Brother, why do you ask such a thing?"

Zhang Jian shook his head: "I merely sensed something after recently witnessing divine power."

Daoist Tianxu nodded upon hearing this; he had vaguely known of the movements when the City God acted, and he shook his head.

"Concerning the subtleties of the divine path, the old Daoist is not entirely clear either, but many ancient texts in the Tiexian Observatory might contain a few scattered records."

Daoist Tianxu's eyes showed a hint of shame: "The old Daoist ultimately falls short of the ancestral masters of the Tiexian Observatory; my vision is limited."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Jian smiled and said: 'Senior Tianxu, you are being too modest. Expertise has its specialties; when it comes to understanding the fields of medicine and pharmaceutics, Senior Tianxu far surpasses your predecessors—who in Phoenix Yang Commandery doesn't know of Senior Tianxu's accomplishments in these two fields!'

Upon hearing this, Tianxu, the old Daoist, blushed slightly, but his expression remained smiling; everyone likes to hear kind words, let alone a young talented cultivator whose Daoist practice and cultivation even predate his.

Tianxu, the old Daoist, his face flushed with red, immediately slapped his chest and said.

'Brother Zhang, rest assured; after I return, I, the old Daoist, will look into it for you. If I really can't find anything, I'll also ask a few old friends—maybe we'll get an answer!'

'In that case, many thanks, Senior Tianxu; this matter is actually quite important to me!'

Zhang Jian gave a faint smile.

He sensed that he might soon have to deal directly with that Dragon Lord, so naturally he needed to make some preparations, knowing how to restrain that Dragon Lord in order to proceed.

Qi Yi and Tianxu, the old Daoist, chatted briefly in the small courtyard; having obtained the information they wanted, they hurried off. This time Qi Yi invited Tianxu, the old Daoist, over for another matter—specifically, to appraise the guest minister Daoist invited by Qi Yuanjia of the Four Branches.

So as not to be deceived.

……

Zhang Jian, meanwhile, was waiting in the courtyard for the feedback of that 'forefather' after the morning ancestral rite.

Regarding this, Zhang Jian still held considerable anticipation.