Chapter 683: Going Home

Since Guiyuanshi had to visit a friend and it was also a matter of importance for the Sun Court, he did not invite Tang Zhao, and Tang Zhao would not propose traveling together. They bid farewell for now, agreeing to reunite in Zhongtian Prefecture in a few days to head to the Sun Court together.

This ceremony had used breathing soil to fill the great pit in Yunzhou, and encountering Guiyuanshi had also provided a good start for resolving the matter of the Jinwu Sword. Having set aside two worries at once, Tang Zhao felt a sense of relief.

The next major event was preparing to go to the heavens to deal with big figures, which was also a tense matter, but at least for the moment, he had a few days of leisure.

Why not... go back to Zhuoyu Villa for a look?

In the blink of an eye, he had been out for over half a year. He had stayed at the Training Camp for a few months, spent some time at his old home, and then there was Baiyujing, Wangliang Mountain, Zhongtian Prefecture... Having drifted outside for many days, he truly missed home a little.

Zhuoyu Villa was undoubtedly his home.

It just so happened that Xu Zhongnan had also come. It was rare for him to return to Yunzhou, so how could he not go back to Zhuoyu Villa to take a look? Although returning would surely involve bickering with his Master, this was also the atmosphere of home; he wouldn't be used to it if it weren't noisy.

Thus, Tang Zhao planned to set off back to the mountain with Xu Zhongnan the next day.

But in truth, he had thought it too simple.

Having suddenly been enfeoffed as a Marquis and possessing a truly official status recognized by the Imperial Court, did he not have to act according to his status?

For example, social engagements.

The grand banquet in the evening went without saying; the distinguished guests who had come from afar all attended. As the protagonist, could Tang Zhao possibly escape it? The people offering toasts swirled around like a revolving lantern, and all sorts of flattering words—"people lifting each other up like a fancy sedan"—gushed out like a spring. The speakers were insincere, the listeners were indifferent; amidst the red lanterns, green wine, and clinking glasses, most of the night passed just like that. In the end, Tang Zhao had to feign drunkenness to escape and get some rest.

By the next day, there were all sorts of small visits and gatherings. Those nobles all wanted to meet this new favorite in private. These people had different statuses; some only needed to be seen together, while others required sitting down for tea and a chat, and some even required tagging on a meal. The Gaoyuan Marquis helped him block some of the social engagements, but most of them he had to handle himself.

The Gaoyuan Marquis also seemed to want him to have more contact with these matters, even to learn this kind of worldly sophistication, and even took the initiative to point out some of the keys to him. Although Tang Zhao felt it didn't seem necessary, he was eventually pushed into it for several sessions. Fortunately, his temperament was good and his emotional intelligence was not bad, so although he was a novice, he didn't make any mistakes.

Afterward, the Gaoyuan Marquis also organized a banquet for the various department heads of Yunzhou and the generals of the Dudu Mansion's personal troops—all men of real power in Yunzhou—and brought Tang Zhao around to meet them one by one. Everyone offered toasts, and Tang Zhao was even more bewildered, yet he handled it without error.

Once this wave of social engagements passed, Tang Zhao still had to gather with a few friends who had come from afar. He couldn't just handle the outsiders and ignore his own people, could he? He gathered with Yun Xiyan, Wang Fei, and the others once more.

At the banquet, besides his old friends, Wang Fei also brought a little prince. Upon asking, it was a grandson of Prince Shou, who, because he particularly admired Tang Zhao, insisted on following along to have a drink. Since the other party was smiling and welcoming, Tang Zhao couldn't drive him away. Fortunately, although the little prince didn't look very sharp, he didn't have any airs, could talk with everyone, and really enjoyed the feeling of making new friends. He and Yun Xiyan were the best drinkers at the banquet.

Being able to drink and knowing how to drink are two different concepts; just using Qi to support oneself so as not to get drunk and actually knowing how to drink are two different concepts. At this banquet, only Yun Xiyan could discuss drinking with the little prince.

Actually, the title "Prince Shou" made Tang Zhao feel familiar. Upon careful thought, it seemed to be the master of that Liu Hu, who had wanted to buy lifespan from him, though he hadn't sold it in the end.

Judging from Liu Hu going to Wangliang Mountain to stir up trouble, Prince Shou wouldn't be any good either, but the two sides had no great enmity for the time being, so they could coexist peacefully for now. Unless Liu Hu, after returning, disregarded the grace of saving his life and held a grudge, lodging a malicious complaint against Tang Zhao for the failed trade.

But even if that were the case, so what?

Tang Zhao was no longer at a level where he cared about the targeting of most worldly power. To speak brazenly, he was already on another level. He talked with the little prince when he could, and once the gathering dispersed, he forgot about this person.

It was when he was sobering up that Wang Fei asked him in private: "I heard you are going to take charge of Yunzhou?"

Tang Zhao was stunned and said: "Huh? Where did that come from?"

This was the first time he himself had heard of this matter, and he found it utterly absurd. He opened his mouth to refute it because he had never thought in that direction.

Wang Fei said: "Everyone sees it that way. This time, the Gaoyuan Marquis specifically requested a title of Marquis for you to build momentum. If this matter was still just hearsay before coming to Yunzhou, at most three parts true, then since she gathered the audience and let you perform such a great merit in front of important guests, it should be eight parts true. With the merit of saving Yunzhou and the strength to suppress a province, wouldn't becoming the master of Yunzhou be a matter of course?"

Tang Zhao was even more stunned and said: "It's not that she wanted me to perform merit, but that this matter could only be done by me; I naturally had no choice but to take it on..." He thought for a moment, then shook his head, "Impossible. Not to mention that the Marquis hasn't retired yet, even if she were to retire, it wouldn't be my turn. How many years have I been working for Yunzhou? There are many people more qualified than me; even if it were to reach Chief Xing, it wouldn't be my turn."

Wang Fei shook his head and said: "You speak of Chief Xing? He is far less suitable than you. Your personality and strength, with a little tempering, can shoulder great matters. Your strength is stronger, and your charisma is also very prominent; you are suitable to be a leader. Moreover, the Gaoyuan Marquis is clearly choosing this way. Perhaps the Gaoyuan Marquis hasn't told you yet; you are not an official, so you are not very sensitive to such things, but many people have seen it."

Tang Zhao certainly knew that Xing Ji could not be the master of Yunzhou, otherwise the Prison Suppression Division would explode first, but he couldn't be either. He had no foundation in Yunzhou, his seniority was extremely low, his merit... well, he had merit, his connections... he had a little bit, his strength... his strength was also sufficient... In short, this kind of thing was too sudden, right?

Wang Fei said: "Since she hasn't told you, you should act as if you don't know for now and see how she arranges it. Once you have the merit and strength, seniority, connections, and such matters—she will arrange them all clearly one by one. The Gaoyuan Marquis is a reliable feudal lord; there aren't many such people left nowadays. And to speak bluntly, the outside world is already in a chaotic age. In a chaotic age, there aren't that many rules; it's all about the capable rising to the top. If you don't choose a leader well, it will really cause a great force to perish in an instant. Didn't you just say it? 'No choice but to take it on.' That was well said; if Yunzhou needs you, you certainly have no choice but to take it on."

After the gathering dispersed, Tang Zhao was still thinking about Wang Fei's words. On one hand, he still felt it was absurd, but on the other hand, he had taken it in; it was impossible not to care.

He had first felt that him taking charge of Yunzhou was an absurd matter, but upon reflection, he recalled an important thing: Is the Marquis going to retire?

It wasn't apparent, was it?

Just as Wang Fei said, outside of Yunzhou, the Human World was already approaching a chaotic age. For a force to stand firm in a chaotic age, the most important thing was stability. The Gaoyuan Marquis hadn't been standing firm in Yunzhou for many years, and now that she had finally cleared away the accumulated ills, it was precisely a period of ascent, and her prestige had accumulated to a certain degree; how could she change people rashly?

Although it might just be a precaution, like establishing a crown prince to stabilize people's hearts, Tang Zhao still vaguely felt something was wrong:

Could it be a health issue?

After all, although the Marquis looked healthy, her appearance was already that of an old woman. Generally, even a Sword Hero who didn't have much time left wouldn't let themselves look that aged.

Thinking that the Marquis might no longer be able to sit in command of Yunzhou and that the hard-won stable situation of his hometown might stir up waves again, Tang Zhao felt anxious once more. He had just gotten rid of one vexing matter, and a new one had arisen; these vexing matters were truly endless.

Tang Zhao could only worry about this matter silently by himself; the matter of the Sun Court was right before his eyes.

Thus, after being delayed in Zhongtian Prefecture for three days, estimating that his vacation balance was insufficient, Tang Zhao hurried back to Zhuoyu Villa. By this time, Xu Zhongnan had already returned a step earlier. His vacation was even shorter than Tang Zhao's, and once he left, he wouldn't be able to return for a long time, so Tang Zhao couldn't let him waste time accompanying him; therefore, he had asked him to return a step earlier.

On his way back, Tang Zhao passed by the White Jade Flourishing Shop and had a hurried meeting with Shopkeeper Liu. There was no time to look at the account books or talk in detail; he only roughly understood the shop's development over the past year. He learned that the shop was developing well, a branch had been opened in Jichun City, and they had received many orders from the Land Inspection Division, the Jing'an Division, and the front-line armies; it was truly flourishing.

Shopkeeper Liu also thanked Tang Zhao for pulling in a large number of official orders for the shop while he was away, making the business take off, and said he had great ability. Tang Zhao felt a bit ashamed upon hearing this. At most, he had brought some goods and pulled in business over the past year; he hadn't seriously done any sales. All the shop's affairs were handled by the shopkeeper, and the product research and development were also based on ideas Tang Zhao provided, with his senior brothers and sisters leading the outer-sect junior brothers and sisters to do the work. He, this hands-off manager, was too hands-off.

It was clearly he himself who wanted to build a large group company enterprise.

After commending Shopkeeper Liu and the shop's employees, Tang Zhao left behind an Art Tool development plan he had made in his spare time and hurried away, not even eating lunch. He thought about going up the mountain to mooch a meal from Senior Sister Xue; there was still good food to be had there.

Flying all the way up to Jiugao Mountain and arriving at the mountain hollow again, seeing that large expanse of marsh as clear as a bright pearl, he suddenly felt a sense of relief in his heart. He took a deep breath, drawing the misty water vapor into his chest, and felt as if the great stone pressing on his chest had been moved away.

Home!

Ever since he had no family outside, his only home was Zhuoyu Villa.

That small Sword Hut by the water's edge was precisely where he had taken root and sprouted.

Having returned to the villa, he naturally had to see his Master first. He hurried to Gongyu Hall, only to find it empty. Xue Xianyun was not there. He felt slightly puzzled, but thought perhaps his Master had gone out.

Then, finding his Senior Sister to mooch a meal was the priority.

Who would have thought that upon going to Xue Yeyu's place, Xue Yeyu was not there either, only a forest full of owls sleeping soundly in the daytime. He was a bit puzzled; Xue Yeyu was very home-bodied and didn't go out easily, so why wasn't she there either?

Then hadn't Senior Brother Xu come back for nothing?

He had no choice but to walk along the plank road by the water's edge to see who was around to pay a visit, and then discovered that his Fifth Senior Sister was not there either. Finally, he encountered his Sixth Senior Brother, Deng Chong, who was walking in a hurry on the plank road.

Deng Chong was very pleasantly surprised to see Tang Zhao and chatted for a while. Hearing Tang Zhao ask about their Master, he said: "They are all at Third Senior Sister's place. A very strange guest came and specifically asked to see Third Senior Sister. Usually, Master certainly wouldn't allow it, but this time she actually agreed. But she was worried, so she has been staying there to accompany her. The matter is strange, and we are also on edge, but no one else can enter Third Senior Sister's place—you should be able to go, right?"