Chapter 264: 256 Communication

Tang Zhao asked in confusion, "Mine?"

Who would send him a letter, or rather, who would send a letter to Tang Zhao via Wei Se?

Tang Zhao's old acquaintances were all in the Land Inspection Division, and those he communicated with often, like Xing Ji, had the address of his mountain, so they could just send it directly; even if it were forwarded from the shop at the foot of the mountain, it should have been Manager Liu giving it to him, not forwarded to Wei Se, right?

Wei Se smiled and said, "This humble one..."

Tang Zhao said, "Just say 'you' and 'me'."

Wei Se said, "I followed the address you gave and found the foot of Jiugao Mountain, but I didn't immediately find the White Jade Flourishing Shop you mentioned. I walked around and found a shop called 'Yuhai Trading House', which was quite large. I thought since both had the character 'Jade', perhaps there was some connection? So I stayed there first."

Tang Zhao recalled, "Yuhai Trading House... that is a place full of memories."

When Tang Zhao first came to Jiugao Mountain, he had stayed at Yuhai Trading House. At that time, Liu Qiguang was still the manager of Yuhai Trading House, and he had met Lady Hua Rong with Hua Xifu, met a young couple who were from a noble family but filled with despair, and also met Jiang Shenyi, who had flown in from outside riding on Fenglei Wings.

These memories were as clear as if they were yesterday.

He hadn't been to that shop in a few years; things must have changed there, right?

Wei Se said, "While staying at Yuhai Trading House, I specifically investigated. From the manager to the clerks, there were no traces of Zhuoyu Villa, except for a young girl living next door who stayed hidden in her room and never went out. I spent a whole day outside asking about the White Jade Flourishing Shop but got nowhere. That night, I returned to my room to rest. In the middle of the night, I heard the sound of wind outside the window. I was alert and pushed the window open to check, but there was nothing unusual. When I turned back, that girl was already sitting in my room."

Tang Zhao said in surprise, "That is rare indeed."

One must know that although Wei Se was not a Sword Guest, and perhaps not a peerless expert, his vigilance and ability to hide himself were unquestionable. His light-body technique was extremely strong, and he was skilled at killing without a sound. Only he could sneak into others' rooms without them knowing; how could someone else sneak under his very nose?

However, there were many capable people in the world, so it was not strange.

Wei Se said, "I was naturally startled, but I didn't dare to act—an assassin cannot rashly challenge an unpredictable opponent. That girl was wearing a Veil Hat and a face covering, so I couldn't see her appearance, but judging by her figure, she was about seventeen or eighteen..."

Tang Zhao thought: You couldn't see her face clearly, yet you could judge her age; what kind of skill is that?

"She wasn't dressed luxuriously, but her manners were very elegant and quiet, as if she were a young lady from some great house. I couldn't see through her more and more, so I could only probe: 'Who are you, Excellency? Why have you come uninvited?' The girl didn't answer, but instead asked: 'What is your relationship with Tang Zhao?'"

Tang Zhao was surprised. She called his name directly; judging by that tone, she either had an old grudge with him or was so familiar that she didn't need to be polite. Perhaps both?

"I weighed the situation and answered truthfully: 'I am his student.' The girl asked in confusion: 'Is that so? He can take students now? What proof do you have?' Sir, you know me; although I know how to adapt to circumstances, I am not the kind of honest person who is helpless when things happen and is led by the nose. At the time, I wanted to brush her off and then fish for her background. Unexpectedly, I don't know how, but my heart became muddled, and I answered whatever she asked. Thinking back on it now, it is still unbelievable. I only remember that there was a lamp lit in the room at the time, but after she came in, the light gradually dimmed, and the room became gloomy, as if I had entered some realm of Shadow. I felt a chill in my heart at that time, unable to control myself. I told her everything that had happened before, including the past between you and me. Looking back, I suspect she used..."

"Sword Art?"

Wei Se nodded and said, "She should be a Sword Guest, right?"

Tang Zhao said, "Very likely, but..."

But a Spirit Official might also have such means. Although Tang Zhao didn't understand the system of Spirit Officials well, Spirit Officials were inherently skilled at manipulating the Spirit, and it was perfectly normal for them to have several ways to lure people into a trap without them knowing.

If it were a Spirit Official, then it was very likely...

A Turtle Bandit!

"I sobered up a little and said: 'You are an expert, Excellency, playing me in the palm of your hand, but why?' She sighed: 'I have no connection with you, so naturally I didn't come for you. I came to find Tang Zhao. I have some words to tell him in person. But he doesn't return for one or two days, and I don't have that much time to wait for him. Since you are his private subordinate, you can naturally see him. Take this letter and give it to him personally; don't let a second person know. If you leak the secret, watch out for your life.'"

Tang Zhao frowned. This was a common threat used in the Jianghu, but coming from a potential Sword Guest, it might not just be a threat.

Wei Se also knew this was a matter of life and death; only by seeing Tang Zhao and handing over the letter would he be safe. But when he narrated it, his tone remained calm, without any extra expression, as if he were talking about something that had nothing to do with him.

"I took the letter and asked: 'If Sir asks, how should I address you?' She said: 'Just say this letter is from the General to him.' Then she pushed the door open and went out, never to be seen again."

Tang Zhao stared at the letter in front of him. The envelope was clean, without a single word on it. He thought to himself: General? Do I know a General? The highest official I know is an Inspector, and it seems he is only of the fourth rank, still several levels away from a General.

If one were to say the high official he knew, Li Hua Sword was indeed a young girl, but as an Inspector of the Land Inspection Division, why would she need to be so mysterious to find him?

Then who else could it be?

General...

He was suddenly startled, remembered something, and said, "Give me the letter to see."

Wei Se said, "There is no poison on this letter, and there shouldn't be any traps. I will wait for you outside; if there is anything, call me." After saying this, he walked out of the room and left the door ajar.

Tang Zhao praised him for being careful and opened the letter. The handwriting on the letter was one he had never seen before.

After reading it completely, Tang Zhao closed the letter and was slightly lost in thought, saying, "It really is the General."

After a long time, he came out of the room and found Wei Se standing at the door, his figure as straight as a javelin, with no expression on his face. Seeing Tang Zhao come out, he relaxed slightly and nodded in greeting.

Tang Zhao smiled and said, "It really is a letter from an old friend of mine, a General, warning me of danger. Wei Se, help me deliver a letter as well."

Wei Se said, "I am willing to serve."

Tang Zhao said, "The place is a bit far. Go to Zhongtian Prefecture, the capital of our Yunzhou, and help me deliver a letter to one of my teachers. By the way, help me visit him and see how his mood is. I should have gone to see him myself, but now the sect has heavy matters, and I cannot get away, so I have to ask for your help; I am truly ashamed. If he says a few sarcastic things to you, don't mind it—if he still speaks so sarcastically, that would be great."

Wei Se nodded, feeling inevitably strange: Isn't he an elder? Why be sarcastic to a junior? Is he so lacking in self-respect?

After arranging the shop's affairs, Tang Zhao finally returned to the sect.

There were also a pile of things on the mountain, but those were all shared by everyone. For miscellaneous affairs, there were the Sixth and Seventh Senior Brothers; for defense, there was the Eighth Senior Brother. The Fifth Senior Sister took the remaining disciples who had nothing to do and almost no martial arts to protect themselves and retreated to the Inner Valley, focusing on closed-door cultivation and also handling the Art Tool business of the shop. Tang Zhao originally wanted to arrange for Hua Xifu to go to the shop at the foot of the mountain, but Hua Xifu herself wanted to be with her fellow disciples and friends, so Tang Zhao could only instruct her to follow the Fifth Senior Sister closely. The Fifth Senior Sister, Fu Qinghuan, was someone who knew what she was doing and could hide her trump cards; she wouldn't put herself in danger, so there was no danger in following her.

Tang Zhao also visited the Third Senior Sister and asked for many things from her, besides the lucky pouches, there were still many medicines. When it came to refining medicine, everyone on the mountain combined couldn't compare to the Third Senior Sister, Zhu Ying. Before leaving, Tang Zhao urged his senior sister to pay attention to safety and it would be best to leave the Sword Hut and follow them to hide deeper in Jiugao Mountain; Zhu Ying nodded without a word.

Finally, he found Jiang Shenyi, told him some new information, asked him to pay more attention to the Boutique Shop, and then said that he had invited external help, which could help him.

Jiang Shenyi got angry as soon as he heard it and said, "We should solve our own sect's affairs; why invite outsiders to interfere?"

Tang Zhao comforted him, "If it were our own Talisman Sword Master's business, of course we would solve it ourselves. But the ones coming are Turtle Bandits, those disgusting and vicious guys. We don't know how many backup plans they have hidden, so we must also hide some trump cards. The one I invited is one of our own, and it's only for the sake of 'just in case'; it will never tarnish our own reputation. You will definitely still be in charge of the defense."

If it were before the Talisman Conference, with Jiang Shenyi's pride, he would never have listened to such words and would have refused flatly. But after the journey of tempering, and with the better relationship between the fellow disciples, after Tang Zhao tried to persuade him, Jiang Shenyi could only agree and said, "I also have trump cards. If you want to invite friends, just do it openly; no need to hide things. Zhuoyu Villa can protect everyone."

This was similar to Tang Zhao's plan, so he said, "I am indeed inviting him openly. Although the date of the Sword Casting Conference is not yet certain, everyone can invite their relatives and friends together. Not to mention asking for help, just saying that such a joyous event should be more lively."

Jiang Shenyi said, "I am not like you; I have no relatives or friends."

Afterwards, he asked a question: "Do you think Shi Chunqing will come to the Sword Casting Conference?"

Tang Zhao was silent. If Shi Chunqing came, he would certainly not come as a guest, but with his own purpose, and that would be when it was truly time to meet with blades.

So, it was better not to come than to come.

Jiang Shenyi grinned and said, "If he comes, that would be great. I will catch him, ask him: 'Why did you betray', and then kill him with my own hands."

Tang Zhao arranged everything, buried his head in preparing materials, and after a few more days, officially entered Gongyu Hall to go into closed-door seclusion with Xue Xianyun for Sword Casting.

The series of events that happened at Zhuoyu Villa finally spread like wildfire. Because Tang Zhao and the others shone brightly at the Talisman Conference, Zhuoyu Villa was more famous than before, so more people were paying attention, both openly and secretly. Xue Xianyun's subsequent closed-door Sword Casting attracted countless prying eyes and guesses. Some guessed that he was casting the sword out of spite and preparing it hastily, like child's play, and it would definitely not succeed. Others wanted to say that perhaps he would fail in Sword Casting and throw his life into it, and the great Zhuoyu Villa would have to change its Master.

Amidst the gossip and rumors, time flowed by like water.