Chapter 60: Meeting Old Friends Again, Changes in the Court

【You brought Yang Su into the Patriarch Hall, where the ancestors were enshrined, incense was swirling, and the atmosphere was solemn and solemn.】

【You have not stepped out of the Tomb of the Living Dead for many years.】

【Master Liu Jinchan saw you, a gentle smile appeared on his face, and he stood up: "Shenzhou, you are here."】

【His voice revealed a bit of intimacy and gratification.】

【Lu Yu, among the disciples, also stood up and bowed respectfully to you: "Greetings, Senior Brother."】

【Perhaps because he is older, Lu Yu has become more and more steady over the years, and you feel gratified in your heart.】

【The six disciples following Lu Yu also dared not be negligent.】

【They bowed to you one by one: "Greetings, Senior Uncle."】

【After you returned the courtesy with a smile, you sat in the second seat; Liu Jinchan was the head.】

【Liu Jinchan's gaze stayed on Yang Su's red-rimmed eyes for a moment, with doubt.】

【Surprised why this kid Yang Su cried until his eyes were red.】

【Yang Su felt a bit uneasy under everyone's gaze; he wanted to explain stammeringly, but didn't know where to start.】

【Lu Yu's eyes froze; he couldn't stand a man crying and sobbing.】

【Yang Su originally had a bit of courage, but was scared by Lu Yu's gaze and hurriedly hid behind you.】

【Lu Yu has had extremely high prestige among the disciples over the years, and no one is afraid of his strictness.】

【"Can't learn?"】

【"It's not that your comprehension is low, it's that you've been beaten too little; Master will spar with you."】

【"Still can't? Come, come, Master will open a small stove for you."】

【Naturally, Lu Yu's hands were extremely measured, not hurting tendons or bones, but there was no lack of flesh-and-blood pain.】

【Under this heavy pressure, the seven made rapid progress and had already made a name for themselves in the Jianghu.】

【In the Jianghu, they were known as the "Seven Sons of Zhongnan."】

【Maybe Lu Yu's cultivation talent was really too high; among the seven disciples, he always felt something was missing.】

【The eldest of the seven was already a grandmaster, but couldn't hold on for one move in front of Lu Yu.】

【You were curious about what realm Lu Yu had reached.】

【Now he had reached the point of returning to simplicity, and no miraculous signs could be seen from the outside.】

【You sparred with Lu Yu, but he didn't show his true ability, just smiling: "Brother, your cultivation progress is a thousand miles a day, I'm a bit unable to defeat you."】

【You only had the word "speechless"!】

【Seeing this, you waved your hand, and Lu Yu didn't say anything more after you spoke.】

【Yang Su breathed a sigh of relief; otherwise, today would probably be another one-sided crushing sparring session.】

【Liu Jinchan looked at you gathered together in the field, his heart full of gratification.】

【In the Jianghu of the Great Qing, the Three Truths and One Sect had already become the martial arts leader of the righteous path.】

【The sect had the strongest person above the Great Grandmaster realm, Lu Yu, sitting in town, Lu Chen was also a grandmaster, and the other disciples all had the potential of grandmasters.】

【Prosperous, nothing more than this.】

【Back to business.】

【A decree came from the Great Qing court, concerning the Lu family.】

【Liu Jinchan seemed to already know this decree from the capital and said to you two brothers: "Shenzhou, You'an, this matter needs to be carefully considered."】

【"Don't be in a hurry for now."】

【Lu Yu frowned; he had just returned to the mountain.】

【You were deep in thought after hearing this.】

【Just in this moment of silence, the door of the back hall of the main hall

【Behind the old man followed two small eunuchs with respectful expressions.】

【It was actually an old acquaintance!】

【This person was none other than the former Seal-Holding Eunuch, Ma Bao.】

【The Seal-Holding Eunuch who had once galloped a thousand miles to the Northern Territory, dancing with his precious sword amidst the wormwood, was now white-haired and looked like an old man.】

【He had arrived at Mount Zhongnan yesterday, carrying the Son of Heaven's decree, not daring to show the slightest slack, and had been waiting for a long time today.】

【Because the situation was special.】

【Ma Bao knew deeply that this matter was of great importance and could not afford any mistakes. He did not sit and wait for the two Lu brothers to come seeking the decree as in the past, but took the initiative to come and deliver it.】

【When Emperor Huizong passed away at Mount Zhongnan, he, a eunuch of the previous dynasty, was still able to hold the power of the Inner Palace and the Eastern Depot amidst the court's power struggles.】

【This was only because his master, that Grandmaster of the Daqing Jianghu, known in the court as the Nine-Thousand-Year-Old, the Empress Dowager's personal eunuch, had always stood firm.】

【No one in the palace dared to touch a hair on his head.】

【Today, Ma Bao stepped onto the land of Mount Zhongnan once again. Revisiting the old place, a wave of indescribable emotion surged in his heart.】

【Back then at Mount Zhongnan, the Demon Master ran rampant, several Grandmasters fell, and Emperor Huizong met with disaster; those painful memories lingered in his heart like a nightmare, long unable to dissipate.】

【There was bitterness at the corners of Ma Bao's mouth.】

【The master has passed, the servant survives.】

【His heart could not find a moment of peace; over these years, his cultivation had regressed, and he had grown increasingly frail.】

【Ma Bao's gaze involuntarily turned toward Lu Yu, who was sitting in the seat of honor.】

【What realm had the person who was not even a match for the Demon Master back then reached now? His gaze revealed deep awe and inquiry.】

【Ma Bao tightened his robes; he had come to Mount Zhongnan today for official business.】

【And he had no choice but to come!】

【The few eunuchs in the court who were to proclaim the decree did not know the prowess of this Young Master Lu, the Young Marshal.】

【If they truly offended him, it would likely be another disaster.】

【Ma Bao, having had a few encounters with this Young Master, took the initiative to come.】

【Ma Bao did not want to see Daqing fall into true turmoil and change its surname only a few years after his master's death.】

【He knew well the status and influence of the Lu family in the Daqing court, and he understood what this decree meant for the Lu family.】

【Those purple-robed officials in the court, those who eat the meat of the commoners.】

【They only knew that this Young Master had been cultivating the Dao at Mount Zhongnan for fourteen years, and most of the world had forgotten his name.】

【They did not know how many temple fairs in the Northern Territory offered sacrifices to the Young Master.】

【How many families in the Northern Territory hung portraits of the Young Master.】

【How many generals of the Northern Defense Army, that force that stood as a pillar against the Northern Wind, followed this Young Master with heartfelt submission.】

【The ministers in the court actually wanted to make an issue of this Young Master's father.】

【Ma Bao did not know what they were thinking.】

【Why the Second Imperial Prince, who was called "virtuous, capable, and possessing the ambition of expansion" at the time of his ascension, would act in such a way.】

【A new emperor brings new ministers; having been a servant for so many years, Ma Bao naturally knew what could be said and what could not be mentioned by a single word.】

【Therefore, he had to act carefully to ensure the decree was delivered accurately to the Lu family, while also trying to avoid unnecessary conflict.】

【At this moment, the main hall was solemn.】

【You looked at Ma Bao in the hall with a rare, burning gaze.】

【The hall was silent.】

【You lowered your eyes, and the smile that usually hung at the corners of your mouth had vanished.】

【Even Yang Su, who was standing to the side, suddenly felt like he was seeing you for the first time; it was the first time he had seen you so serious, and he felt an inexplicable pressure.】

【Before this, no matter when, this Martial Uncle had always been full of smiles.】

【The Seven Disciples of Zhongnan standing to the side suddenly felt a strange fear toward the Martial Uncle who had always been kind and approachable.】

【Seeing this, Liu Jinchan even sat up straight.】

【Ma Bao saw that this Young Master, whom he had interacted with a few times and who had always been quite kind, was different today.】

【The speech he had prepared for a moment did not know how to begin.】

【It turned into words on his lips.】

【"Young Master, it has been a long time."】

【You nodded faintly.】

(End of this chapter)