Chapter 317: Cangshuge (Part 2)

Hu Xiaotian said: "The Li Eunuch of the Cangshuge?"

Liu Yuzhang nodded and said: "Not bad, it's Li Yuncong, the manager of the Cangshuge."

Hu Xiaotian picked up the three books, and Liu Yuzhang again said: "Just take these to him; when I went to the Imperial Hospital yesterday, I ran into him and he mentioned this."

Hu Xiaotian grunted, and without thinking he recalled the secret passage beneath the wine cellar, one of which leads to the Cangshuge; there he also discovered the corpse of a little eunuch of the Cangshuge who had been dead for many years. Originally he had wanted to go to the Cangshuge to investigate, and now he conveniently had an excuse and opportunity.

The Cangshuge is located southwest of the Imperial Garden, a place where the imperial court collects textual and illustrative materials; behind it lies Fengming Mountain, part of the imperial garden; the seven-story main building of the Cangshuge is built against the mountain, imposing and magnificent, second only to Piaomiao Mountain as the highest point in the palace.

Hu Xiaotian wrapped the three volumes of "Poetry and Ci Grand View" in yellow silk and headed straight for the Cangshuge. Although the Bureau of Imperial Gardens and the Cangshuge are both inside the palace, they are nearly three li apart. Along the way Hu Xiaotian passed many checkpoints; now he is well acquainted with the palace routes from frequent comings and goings, and he knows many of the guards responsible for palace security. Whenever he has the chance he offers them fruit and fine wine, getting along very well, so this route was smooth all the way until he reached the front gate of the Cangshuge, where he finally encountered obstruction.

First, the guards here are unfamiliar to him; second, the Cangshuge is a key area of the palace, storing many rare and precious books, some of which could be called priceless treasures. Naturally the guards are stricter. According to the rules here, aside from the Emperor, anyone entering or leaving must undergo a body search.

Since Hu Xiaotian's true identity was exposed by Qiqi and Long Xi Yue in the wine cellar, he has become much more cautious; whenever he goes out he wraps his little brother in layers of bandages to avoid revealing any flaw. After stating his purpose outside the Cangshuge, the two guards began to search him. Then they unwrapped the yellow silk and inspected the books inside, finding nothing suspicious, only then did they let him pass.

The manager eunuch Li of the Cangshuge was basking in the sun in the courtyard of the Scripture Storage Pavilion, lying on a recliner while a little eunuch knelt beside him pounding his legs.

Led by a little eunuch, Hu Xiaotian came before Eunuch Li and respectfully said: "Hu Xiaotian of the Bureau of Imperial Gardens, acting on Eunuch Liu's orders, has come specially to pay my respects to Eunuch Li."

Eunuch Li's white brows twitched, but he did not immediately open his eyes; he murmured: "What did Eunuch Liu send you over for?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Naturally, to return the books."

Eunuch Li grunted, his eyes finally opening a slit. Seeing Hu Xiaotian holding a yellow-silk-wrapped bundle in one hand—its shape suggesting books—and a jar of wine in the other, his gaze brightened instantly and finally settled on Hu Xiaotian's face.

Hu Xiaotian's smile was warm as spring; his sunny demeanor easily left a good impression.

Eunuch Li waved his hand, signaling the leg‑pounding little eunuch to step aside, then slowly rose from the recliner.

Hu Xiaotian passed the books over first; Eunuch Li took them, didn't even look, and handed them to the little eunuch, then pointed at the wine jar in Hu Xiaotian's hand and said: "This is……"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Eunuch Liu specially sent me to bring you this fine wine for you to enjoy."

Eunuch Li's brows immediately relaxed into a smile as he reached for the wine jar: "What wine?"

"Fifty‑year‑aged Yutang Chun!" The wine cellar contains not only homemade fruit wine but also a section dedicated to storing aged fine wines. Having learned that Eunuch Li loves wine as if it were his life, Hu Xiaotian deliberately catered to his taste in sending the wine—this had nothing to do with Liu Yuzhang; it was entirely his own idea.

Eunuch Li chuckled, handed the wine jar to the little eunuch, who hadn't yet set down the yellow‑silk bundle when his hand slipped and the jar fell straight to the ground.

Hu Xiaotian silently thought it a pity; his vision blurred for an instant, and he saw Eunuch Li's right foot shoot out like lightning, steadying itself under the wine jar, the top of his foot sinking then springing up, sending the jar back into the air; he caught it firmly with his right hand, then raised his left hand and slapped the little eunuch hard across the face, shouting: "Useless, you can't even handle such a small task!"

The little eunuch fell to his knees with a thud, kowtowing like pounding garlic, crying: "I deserve to die, I deserve to die!"

Hu Xiaotian was stunned, his eyes wide open; his surprise was not because the senior eunuch flew into a rage, but because Eunuch Li's move was incredibly swift, almost describable as "graceful as a startled swan." This seemingly lethargic, twilight‑year old eunuch turned out to be a martial arts master—truly, the Dakang palace hides tigers and dragons.

Eunuch Li shook his head, turned to Hu Xiaotian and put on a smile again: "Sorry to have you witness that."

This time Hu Xiaotian came merely to get acquainted with Eunuch Li and become a familiar face; he thought entering the Cangshuge would not be easy, and was about to take his leave when an old acquaintance arrived—it was Fan Zongxi, the junior supervisor of the Imperial Stables, carrying a food box. He and Eunuch Li were originally relatives, with Eunuch Li being his maternal uncle, though few know of this connection.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian also present, Fan Zongxi was quite surprised; had he not appeared, Hu Xiaotian would have left by now, as it was already lunchtime. Fan Zongxi had come to find his uncle for a drink and chat; seeing Hu Xiaotian about to leave, he invited him to stay for the meal.

Hu Xiaotian originally wanted to stay, hoping to get close to Li Yuncong, but after thinking he realized they had just met and perhaps the two had private matters to discuss; his presence would surely be inconvenient, so he laughed: "I'm in a hurry to get back; I still have things to do."

Fan Zongxi, hearing he had business, could only relent. Eunuch Li said: "Little bearded one, if you ever want to read any book, just come to me." He merely tossed off a casual remark, unaware it would give Hu Xiaotian a respectable excuse. Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Thank you, Eunuch Li, for your kindness; I really do want to find a few books to read—on boring evenings it helps pass the time."

Eunuch Li nodded at his words and asked: "What kind of book do you want to see?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Whatever."

Hearing that reply, Eunuch Li couldn't help laughing, and Fan Zongxi also couldn't hold back his amusement. Eunuch Li told the little eunuch standing aside: "Yuanfu, take him over and let him pick a few books he likes to read."

Hu Xiaotian secretly rejoiced, having thought he wouldn't get a chance to enter the Cangshuge this time, yet Eunuch Li's gesture of returning a favor—offering to let him take a few books—was unexpected.

Yuanfu was precisely the little eunuch who had just been massaging Eunuch Li's legs; Hu Xiaotian followed Yuanfu into the Cangshuge, which is actually divided into three sections: the first floor is where the eunuchs of the Cangshuge classify and maintain the books; the second and third floors are the reading area; from the fourth floor upward lies the storage area. Hu Xiaotian could only go up to the third floor; higher floors were off‑limits to him.

Since it was lunchtime, most eunuchs had set aside their work to go eat; only a few remained on duty in the reading area. Yuanfu gave Hu Xiaotian a brief introduction, then set down the few books and smiled: "Lord Hu, what exactly do you want to read?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I want to learn some of Dakang's history since its founding."

Yuanfu replied: "The Dakang Comprehensive Mirror is the best."

Hu Xiaotian had been waiting for exactly that remark; he smiled: "Then let's borrow a few volumes of the Dakang Comprehensive Mirror to read."

Yuanfu led Hu Xiaotian to the third floor of the Cangshuge; Hu Xiaotian came to where the Dakang Comprehensive Mirror was displayed, silently recalling that day when he observed the Cangshuge through a small hole—the position of that hole should not be far from here.

Yuanfu, unaware of Hu Xiaotian's ulterior motive, located the Dakang Comprehensive Mirror and pointed it out to him; Hu Xiaotian took only one volume, intending to keep it as a memento and to have an excuse for a future visit. He glanced briefly at the surroundings, did not linger long lest others suspect his motives, and left immediately after taking the book.

The Golden Trauma Medicine and Mo Jade Regenerating Ointment left by Baobao were remarkably effective; although Hu Xiaotian did not know their ingredients, within a single day his wounds had healed more than half—a recovery speed impossible to explain by the medical theory he possessed. When he first arrived in this era he had once thought its medicine was still in its infancy, but now he sees that applies only to surgery; as his understanding of contemporary medicine deepens, he finds its concepts and development direction completely different from his past understanding.

Perhaps having been a doctor enough in his previous life, Hu Xiaotian has little interest in medicine; unless necessary he rarely shows off his medical skill, and even if he never practices surgery his whole life, he feels no inner itch. Put plainly, he lacks motivation—how can someone without drive possibly wish to improve himself?

In contrast, Hu Xiaotian's interest in martial arts is greater, partly for self‑defense, and more importantly because his own masquerade as a eunuch without castration could be exposed if discovered. Although Quan De'an taught him the so‑called "raising Yin and shrinking Yang," Hu Xiaotian has practiced it repeatedly but made no progress in that area—not because he lacks the aptitude for martial arts, but because the Mysterious Dark Wind Claw and Golden Spider Eight Steps he has now practiced to a respectable level.

As for the internal cultivation method Quan De'an taught him, Hu Xiaotian practices it daily, but progress has been poor; after so long he has not even achieved the "gathering qi" stage that Quan De'an described as the lowest level. Hu Xiaotian personally attributes this to physiological determinism: Quan De'an is a eunuch, and eunuchs differ from ordinary people, so some arts a eunuch can practice while he cannot. (To be continued~-~)