Chapter 865: A Final Farewell

Tang Zhao stood among those paying their respects, silently watching the spirit tablet above. At this moment, a massive coffin was placed in the center, already fitted with carrying poles, waiting for the auspicious hour to be lifted and the funeral procession to begin. Once that was done, the Gaoyuan Marquis would be laid to rest, the spirit tablet above could be removed, and this funeral would be considered concluded.

In other words, a final farewell.

He stood there, and in a trance, he could see the Gaoyuan Marquis's voice and smile, as if the Marquis had stepped down from that wooden bed to greet him, her demeanor still so graceful and elegant, those eyes still so wise and profound, capable of seeing him from head to toe, seeing right through him.

In a trance, he seemed to have greeted the Marquis himself, and the two of them chatted in a state between dream and reality, laughing and talking. As for what they talked about... Tang Zhao did not know.

It was a state between dreaming and waking, between sleep and consciousness; Tang Zhao could not know, and he did not much want to know. Perhaps if he did not know, he could hold onto it for longer; if he were to wake up, all of this would vanish like smoke.

He did not know how much time had passed when he and the Gaoyuan Marquis both stopped and looked at each other in silence. The Gaoyuan Marquis smiled at him and drifted away like a wild goose in flight. Tang Zhao gave a start and snapped back to consciousness. Before his eyes was once again a vast whiteness, with only the spirit tablet and the coffin pitch-black. He could not help but shed tears.

He wept silently for a while, gradually calming down. This was why he had refused to come with great fanfare; while that might have demonstrated his stance and backed Yunzhou, it would have been too noisy. He wanted to wait quietly for a while, to cry if he wanted to cry, to be silent if he wanted to be silent, waiting quietly for a spell until the coffin was lifted and taken out of the shed; naturally, there would be more time later to handle the trivial matters of the Human World.

At this moment, his heart suddenly stirred, and he raised his gaze, seeing someone he was familiar with. He nodded slightly, signaling to Chief Xing: he was here, and everything was fine.

Besides Xing Ji, Tang Zhao sensed that others were looking at him, such as the rather tall and straight young man beside Xing Ji, but he was in no mood to greet other strangers; it was only Xing Ji who required an acknowledgment.

Xing Ji nodded slightly, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly, perhaps intending to smile, and then he silently retreated into the background.

Tang Zhao silently turned his gaze back to the front of the spirit, only to hear Xing Ji say to the young man: "Isn't there only one person here? Why did you say three?"

Tang Zhao felt a slight sense of surprise, and only then did he take another look at that young man:

He was merely a Sword Guest, yet he could actually see Wei Zhangle?

It seemed this was a talent worth cultivating.

He just stood there, and after a while, Wang Fei... that is, Yuan Shengfei, came out to read the Emperor's imperial decree. Tang Zhao was too lazy to perform the rites and slipped out a step ahead. It was nothing more than a eulogy, commendations for the Gaoyuan Marquis, and even the posthumous title of "Loyal and Tranquil" was bestowed upon her. Then, Fu Xianchan was officially appointed as the Governor of Yunzhou and also enfeoffed as a Pavilion Marquis.

A Pavilion Marquis was one rank lower than a Gaoyuan Marquis or a Fuguang Marquis, but it was still a proper marquisate, so from now on, Fu Xianchan could also be addressed as "Marquis." It seemed the Emperor still gave the Gaoyuan Marquis a great deal of face. Tang Zhao listened carefully to the tone, and when he heard the clichéd phrases like "breaking my arm and bone, taking away my pillar and beam, alas and alack," he actually detected a bit of genuine emotion; it seemed the Emperor was truly quite reluctant to part with the Gaoyuan Marquis.

However, the latter part actually contained content about increasing Tang Zhao's fief by a full five thousand households; rounding it up, he was practically a Ten Thousand Household Marquis. Although fiefs were currently just nominal titles, it represented that Tang Zhao's rank was extremely high, reaching a status comparable to the posthumous honors of the Gaoyuan Marquis.

Tang Zhao was first surprised, then immediately guessed: the Emperor had contact with the front lines and likely already knew that Tang Zhao was no longer what he once was, having become a Sword Immortal who had transcended the Human World. Therefore, the Emperor needed to take the initiative to show goodwill. Of course, official titles were meaningless to Tang Zhao; they only made it look as if he were a subject of the Emperor, so Tang Zhao did not go out to receive the decree or express gratitude.

After the final set of procedures was completed, the Gaoyuan Marquis's coffin was finally lifted out of the funeral shed, leaving the city for the cemetery.

All procedures were normal, and no accidents occurred.

Even though Tang Zhao had seen quite a few unfamiliar faces, and even though the crowd was full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, these dragons and tigers were all lying low and obedient, not coming out to stir up trouble, which left Tang Zhao a bit disappointed.

"What, are you disappointed?"

Tang Zhao didn't need to turn around to know who it was, and said: "Is Chief Xing not disappointed?"

Xing Ji led his horse out from inside and said: "What do I have to be disappointed about? Being able to see the Marquis off on her final journey in peace is the best thing. If anyone dares to make trouble at the Marquis's funeral, I will surely scatter the ashes of their entire family."

Tang Zhao nodded and said: "That is what I think as well."

And that is what he did, for instance, with the Turtle Bandits.

Xing Ji said: "Are you coming along?"

Tang Zhao nodded; since he had come, he naturally intended to see the Marquis off until she was laid to rest.

Xing Ji nodded, signaling the young man behind him to bring the horse up, allowing Tang Zhao to mount and follow the procession out of the city.

Seeing the young man approach, Tang Zhao asked: "May I ask how to address the young gentleman?"

The young man was startled, followed by a wave of excitement, and then some nervousness. He hurriedly said: "Reporting to Your Highness, this subordinate is Yi Su. I have long admired Your Highness's great name; seeing you today, your bearing is even more impressive than the rumors."

Tang Zhao smiled slightly: "Young Gentleman, you flatter me. Young Gentleman Yi has extraordinary talent and a great future ahead. Are you going to see the spirit off?"

Yi Su said: "This subordinate is not qualified."

Tang Zhao said: "If that is the case, there is a young Sword Hero inside. If you can find him, you can exchange pointers with him."

After directing him to find Wei Zhangle, Tang Zhao mounted his horse and followed the procession out of the city with Xing Ji. The two of them trailed at the very end. If judged by rank, Xing Ji should not have been in this position and should have been further ahead, but he was not attending the funeral based on his official position, but rather in a private capacity to see her off, so he fell back casually.

In truth, him walking side-by-side with Tang Zhao was quite eye-catching, but as the two of them walked along, no one took a second look. Xing Ji guessed this was Tang Zhao's method, as he was still hiding his presence and did not want to attract anyone's attention.

He said: "I thought you would come out with great fanfare and say something to the relatives, friends, and enemies."

Tang Zhao said: "If there were trouble, I should come out to hold the line, but why would I come out if there is nothing? The center of Yunzhou is, of course, the Governor of Yunzhou, Governor Fu."

Xing Ji sighed. He wanted to say, "When the Marquis was alive, she intended for you to inherit Yunzhou," but after thinking about it, he did not speak the words. Such words that could cause misunderstandings should not be said even in front of Tang Zhao. He only said: "There might have been trouble, but since you settled things yesterday, naturally there is no trouble."

Tang Zhao said: "It was a coincidence. Perhaps it was truly the spirit of the Marquis in heaven protecting us, allowing me to discover the thieves' plot so that she, in her old age, would not be disturbed at the very end."

He recounted the encounter with the Turtle Bandits last night. Hearing about Immortals and the Turtle Bandit Emperor, and such a grand display, Xing Ji was also stunned, followed by lingering fear—if this hadn't been discovered in advance and they had caused a scene today, even if Tang Zhao had stopped it in time, this Zhongtian Prefecture would have suffered heavy losses.

The Marquis spent her life saving the people from fire and water; could it be that her final funeral would have to see the common people plunged back into deep water and scorching fire?

That this matter could pass beneath the surface without a ripple was perhaps truly the spirit of the Marquis in heaven.

"Are there any more of those Turtle Bandits in the Imperial Court? If there are, hand them over to the Imperial Court. Yunzhou will not touch this trouble." In fact, with Xing Ji's temper, he would have wanted to mince any survivor into pieces to vent his anger, but with the Marquis gone, he had to weigh the pros and cons; throwing more trouble to the Imperial Court was the best course of action.

Tang Zhao said: "There are two. I have one here called something 'Wang,' and the one with the Golden Crow Palace Prince should be some kind of Crown Prince; these are the remaining big fish. I will deal with them and hand them to Wang Fei later. By the way, Chief Xing—"

His expression was serious: "The Land Inspection Bureau should be cleaned up."

He then told Xing Ji everything about the traitor in the Land Inspection Bureau, saying: "The errand runner was already an Inspection Envoy; the mastermind behind the scenes must be even more important. The Land Inspection Bureau has already rotted through in a large part."

He had expected Xing Ji to be furious, but Xing Ji only froze for a moment and said: "The Marquis has only just passed away, and they already cannot hold back."

Tang Zhao hurriedly asked: "Who?"

Xing Ji said: "It is not just one or two. Azhao, do not think the Land Inspection Bureau is all that good; it was extremely rotten before, rotten to the core. It was only because the Marquis spent these years repairing it bit by bit that it slowly got better, just like a person who was terminally ill and is now slowly cured with medicine. But one can only say the major illness looks fine; there are still many hidden injuries inside. Removing those hidden injuries one by one is what makes a healthy person. These were things the Marquis was going to do bit by bit, but unfortunately, heaven did not grant her the years. Now the task is left to us, and this is something we must do."

Tang Zhao nodded. When the Marquis was alive, everything was flourishing, but who could say it wasn't because she used her personal prestige to suppress many issues? Once she left, many problems would resurface; these were all things future generations had to face.

Tang Zhao pondered: "If you need me..."

Xing Ji shook his head: "You just watching from afar is more useful than anything else. As long as you let everyone know you are still there, that is the greatest support."

Tang Zhao nodded. Although it was not explicitly stated, both he and Xing Ji knew that his status was different now, and it was no longer appropriate for him to interfere in the affairs of Yunzhou. It was not to say that if Yunzhou faced a catastrophe, he would be constrained by rules and stand idly by, but it was indeed inappropriate to directly intervene in daily management, including struggles at the human level.

If Tang Zhao had returned in time and taken the banner from the Gaoyuan Marquis to become the rightful master of Yunzhou, then although it would be beneath a Sword Immortal to be a feudal lord, no one could say anything, and everything he did would be considered legitimate. But since he did not return and Yunzhou had a formal successor, he should retreat and not stir up further waves.

Tang Zhao said: "Later, when the Marquis is buried, I will appear with great fanfare, communicate with Governor Fu, and then leave a ray of light over Jichun City to represent my will. Then, I should be leaving."

Xing Ji looked melancholy and said: "I originally said that if you, kid, grew up, we could fight side-by-side, but I only saw you brush past me and run ahead. This is also to blame on me being too weak."

Tang Zhao said solemnly: "How can you blame yourself for that, Chief Xing?"

"Hmm?"

"If you want to blame someone, blame me for being too strong."

"Get lost!"

Seeing Wang Qingshan in sight, Xing Ji asked, "What are your plans for what comes next?"

Tang Zhao thought for a moment and said, "The Human World and the Tianmo have a three-year truce period. I will use this time to cultivate well, and then... craft and nurture a powerful item to take my strength to the next level. Three years later, when the flames of war reignite, if I can find a way to solve this once and for all, I will resolve the Tianmo Jie. If I cannot find one, I must at least resolve the Tianmo first."