Chapter 50: The Northern Pacification Commissioner

These words caught Ye Liuyun somewhat off guard as he looked up. Was this concern directed at him? On reflection, it made sense—Yan Shuzhu, as the emperor, had only a handful of capable people around him, so it was natural to worry about any mishaps befalling someone like Ye Liuyun.

With that in mind, Ye Liuyun waved his hand dismissively. “I understand. Please convey my thanks to His Majesty for his concern.”

Lü Lan wanted to say that these words were not ordered by His Majesty but were her own thoughts. Yet, after a brief pause, she chose not to voice her inner feelings. She simply nodded and gracefully left Ye Liuyun’s courtyard. Her ethereal figure truly resembled a fairy under the moonlight.

“I didn’t expect the feminine attire to suit her quite beautifully,” Ye Liuyun muttered to himself as he withdrew his gaze.

He then stretched his limbs leisurely and said in a lazy tone, “Alright, come out!”

At that moment, Xing’er emerged from the corner of the wall. Given Ye Liuyun’s strength, he had long noticed Xing’er hiding in the shadows, as had Lü Lan; neither had made a sound about it.

“Master, I wasn’t spying on you intentionally,” Xing’er quickly explained, worried he might misunderstand. She had only stood there upon seeing someone enter Ye Liuyun’s courtyard, thinking he might be occupied with something important, so she didn’t want to interrupt.

“I know,” Ye Liuyun said with a smile, waving her off gently. He could tell whether she had been spying or not.

“Enough worrying. Have the servants prepare some food; I’m a bit hungry!” Martial artists expended a great deal of energy during training and thus needed more nourishment. Although he had eaten not long ago, after practicing his martial arts, hunger returned.

“Yes! Master, I will have someone prepare it immediately,” Xing’er said with relief, nodding and turning to arrange for the meal.

***

In the days that followed, Ye Liuyun instructed Sinan to keep an eye out for anyone leading a team to leave the imperial city in search of something. The position commanding such an expedition could not be low—at least a thousand-household commander, or more likely, the town’s military governor.

During this period, besides cultivating the Phantom Ninefold Body and the Overlord Blade techniques, Ye Liuyun made a trip to the Zhaoyu Prison. Over these days, many new prisoners had been added.

The inmates had come to recognize Ye Liuyun and knew of his peculiar interest in watching prisoners punished. So, when he arrived, some prisoners who had just survived an execution were dragged out to be beaten again.

Though the prisoners found Ye Liuyun’s obsession somewhat odd, they dared not question it—they knew he was a hundred-household commander.

After this visit, when Ye Liuyun left, the prison was empty again. It seemed they would have to wait a while for new prisoners to be brought in.

“What a pity,” Ye Liuyun murmured with some regret. This time, he hadn’t seen any unique talent traits—mostly just some blue and green-quality ones, with very few blue-quality traits. His own talent traits remained unchanged.

The only useful one was the purple-quality Steel Tendons and Iron Bones trait, whose experience bar was nearly full. He believed that by absorbing a few more similar traits and fusing them, this purple-quality trait could evolve into a golden-quality one. Traits related to constitution were something Ye Liuyun eagerly anticipated, curious about how they would transform at the golden level.

By then, the hour had grown late. Ye Liuyun had planned to return directly, but just then—

“Master! Master!” Sinan suddenly appeared, seemingly having received news.

“Have you found out?” Ye Liuyun asked as he had hoped.

Sinan nodded repeatedly. “Yes, master. I have received word that tomorrow, the Northern Military Governor will lead a team out of the city to search for a weapon.”

Not foolish, they naturally wouldn’t openly say they were looking for a spiritual weapon.

“Northern Military Governor, huh?” Ye Liuyun mused, just as he had suspected. Those qualified to lead expeditions beyond the city for spiritual weapons must hold high ranks. The Embroidered Uniform Guard had only two military governors, one for the north and one for the south.

Ye Liuyun had heard of them but never met. This was a perfect opportunity to see what kind of person the Northern Military Governor was.

“Master, the Northern Military Governor is currently assembling personnel for the expedition. If you wish to join, I can register you now!” Sinan offered.

Such missions usually had a fixed number of participants, so prior notice was necessary.

“Alright,” Ye Liuyun nodded. “You should also inform Shi Sheng to prepare; we leave the city tomorrow.”

“Yes, master!” Sinan responded earnestly and promptly went to carry out the orders.

Having a clever subordinate like Sinan made many things much easier, alleviating the need for Ye Liuyun to handle everything personally. As for Shi Sheng, while his strength was reliable, his wits didn’t quite match Sinan’s.

***

“Northern Military Governor?” Ye Liuyun was now dining mostly in the backyard. While eating, he casually mentioned the expedition. Upon learning Ye Liuyun would be leaving the city tomorrow under the Northern Military Governor’s leadership, Sheng Lanzhi was visibly taken aback.

“Do you know this Northern Military Governor?” Ye Liuyun asked, feeling indifferent. After all, his goal was the high-grade spiritual weapon; it mattered little who led the team.

“I know a little,” Sheng Lanzhi nodded naturally. “When my father was still alive, someone tried to curry favor with this Northern Military Governor and even wanted to marry one of my sisters to him.”

Military governors were among the more powerful figures within the Great Qian Empire. Sheng Li’s efforts to gain the favor of a Northern Military Governor were hardly surprising.

However—

“Did it fail?” Ye Liuyun asked.

Without hesitation, the answer was obvious.

“Not only did it fail, but my father was driven off!” Sheng Lanzhi chuckled, shaking her head. Although it was her father who had been beaten, her expression showed no bitterness; instead, she treated it as a humorous anecdote.

“Drove him off? Does this Northern Military Governor have such a temper?” Ye Liuyun inquired. Even though Sheng Li had lost favor, surely he would not be treated with such disrespect.

“It’s different,” Sheng Lanzhi smiled knowingly. “This Northern Military Governor used to be a cavalry general under the Border General—a warrior, so it’s normal for him to have a fiery temper.”

***