txolops Chapter 26 In the Imperial Court
Chapter 26 In the Imperial Court
"The flower of the daylily is salty, warm in nature, and slightly toxic."
"Drumwort has a pungent taste, is warm in nature, and is non-toxic."
"Left-leaf bamboo leaves are sweet in taste, cold in nature, and non-toxic."
Du Fan dared not be negligent and quickly spoke up, fearing that Uncle Shen would make a move. At the same time, he felt a slight sense of relief. Fortunately, these were just some simple spiritual herbs, which were all grown in the Yao family's spiritual herb garden. It seemed that Uncle Shen was not making things too difficult for him.
"You can stay. From now on, you will live in this thatched hut. You can freely enter and leave this place with this token." Uncle Shen's expression softened slightly, and he casually tossed out a dark green jade token, which Du Fan caught steadily.
"Uncle Shen, my mission is complete, so I will not disturb you any longer. I will take my leave." Wan Baoshan originally planned to send Du Fan, who had broken his leg, to the outer sect's medical clinic for treatment and make further arrangements after he recovered. He was even considering whether to take out a Bone-Healing Pill, but the pill was worth one spirit stone, and he was reluctant to part with it. Just as he was struggling with this decision, he was surprised to find that Du Fan had passed Uncle Shen's test. This surprised him and made him breathe a sigh of relief. Now he was eager to take his leave and did not want to stay any longer.
Uncle Shen waved his hand, and Wan Baoshan felt as if he had been granted a pardon. Before leaving, he did not forget to look at Du Fan with a pitying gaze.
Du Fan caught that look in his eyes and his heart tightened.
"How come your spiritual root is so weak? Never mind, I won't teach you any cultivation methods anyway. If you were in another place, you might be accepted as a disciple, become an outer disciple to embark on the path of cultivation, and even have the opportunity to become an inner disciple in the future. But here, you are just a handyman looking after the medicine garden." Uncle Shen released a divine sense that instantly enveloped Du Fan. He frowned in surprise at first, and then said something that made Du Fan extremely depressed.
"May I ask, Uncle-Master, are there any other servants here? If I have any doubts about cultivating plants, I can ask them for advice," Du Fan asked cautiously.
"Of course there are."
After saying that, Uncle Shen fell silent. Du Fan waited quietly for a while, but the other party still didn't ask anything. He couldn't help but ask, "And then?"
"What do you mean, 'then'? Then they died!" Uncle Shen said irritably.
Du Fan trembled slightly. He finally understood why Wan Baoshan had looked at him with pity when he left.
"The spiritual creatures in the spiritual garden must be cultivated well. If there is a reduction in production or a decline in the quality of the spiritual herbs, you will suffer the same fate as those previous servants."
At the beginning of the month, the sect will issue a list of medicinal herbs to be collected for the month. You must compile and submit the list before the end of the month without any errors.
If you are short of medicinal herbs, you can go to the sect's storeroom to get seeds or seedlings. Taking a little extra is fine, but don't take too much, otherwise the sect's law enforcement will investigate you. If you have any other questions, ask them quickly! Uncle Shen put one hand behind his back, showing his impatience.
"Uncle Shen, what if the sect needs a spiritual herb that wasn't previously grown in the garden, and it can't mature within a month? How should we calculate that?" Du Fan pondered for a moment and came up with a question.
"In this situation, we can only rely on your usual experience. Try to plant a portion of each kind of spiritual herb. If the situation you described really occurs, it will naturally be your responsibility. As for the outcome, I don't need to say more, do I?" Uncle Shen explained briefly, then snorted coldly.
"Uncle Shen, I have one last question. If I have a way to increase the production of spiritual herbs to meet the sect's needs, what should I do with the surplus?" Du Fan mustered his courage and finally asked the question that concerned him most.
"I only care about the result. As for what so-called methods you use to increase production, I don't care. But if you cause trouble, imagine the consequences yourself. If you really have the ability to increase production while completing the sect's orders without compromising quality, then the extra portion will be your personal property. Whether you use it to buy cultivation techniques in the Scripture Pavilion or pills in the Alchemy Room, I won't interfere. However, I advise you to stick to your duties. In addition, the quantity and types of spiritual herbs currently in the Spirit Garden are all recorded. If you misappropriate them, it won't be as simple as just violating the sect rules." Uncle Shen's face darkened, already showing his dissatisfaction with Du Fan.
"The token I just gave you allows you to enter and exit the inner sect, but you must not step into the sect's important or forbidden areas. Otherwise, if you violate the sect rules, I will be the first to deal with you! There is a detailed pharmacopoeia inside the room, which records the descriptions of all the spiritual herbs you will encounter in the sect, as well as my own insights. You are not allowed to leave the sect unless necessary. Also, I am entrusting this place to you. I need to go into seclusion, and you should not disturb me unless necessary. You'd better take care of yourself." After giving his final instructions, Uncle Shen ignored Du Fan, who was standing there dumbfounded, and left with a flick of his sleeve, leaving Du Fan alone in the vast spiritual garden with a bitter smile.
……
Meanwhile, in the imperial court of the Fire Feather Kingdom, hundreds of civil and military officials were arguing and in chaos.
"We must fight! Not only must we defeat the army of the vassal state, but we must also pursue them relentlessly, strike at their heart, and conquer their capital city in one fell swoop. Only then can we bring peace to the world!"
"The wise men say that the best way to subdue the enemy is to win without fighting. Our country is a great nation and a land of etiquette. Even if we fight a war, we must not be disrespectful to others. Your Majesty should write a letter to our neighboring country to make peace. If this war can be avoided, then we should avoid it."
"Bullshit! They've already brought the enemy to our doorstep, and you're still talking about sending letters of peace and etiquette? Have you lost your mind?!"
"General Fan, you are mistaken. Even in war, we must first be courteous and then resort to force. We must first stand on moral ground. This is the demeanor of a great nation. As for General Bai's talk of breaching the capital of the vassal state, that is nothing but childish talk. In the court, please think twice before you speak."
"Think twice, my foot! You bunch of self-proclaimed learned old fools know nothing! The Fanli army is currently encamped three hundred miles outside Xinghuo Town, and will soon invade the land of my Huoyu Kingdom. Only by inflicting heavy losses on them and scaring them will they dare not invade again. At this time, you old geezers still talk about morality? Go home and reason with your fathers!"
"You...you, how can you be so vulgar? This is extremely rude! In front of His Majesty in the court, under the watchful eyes of the sages above, how dare you spew such foul language? This is disrespectful to the sages and to His Majesty! Your Majesty, please punish General Zhao severely, or this old minister will not accept it!" A high-ranking official in his sixties, with gray hair, suddenly knelt down.
The emperor, who sat high in the main hall, was in his thirties, dressed in a dragon robe, and had a handsome appearance. At this moment, he was holding his forehead, looking quite troubled.
At the head of the military ranks stood a distinguished middle-aged man, none other than General Guo Xiong; while at the head of the civil officials' ranks stood a lean old man, Lin Anbang, the prime minister of the Fire Feather Kingdom. Unlike the others who were arguing, these two remained silent, eyes downcast, seemingly unmoved by anything or anyone else.
"General Wang, you should be more careful with your words in court in the future. Alright, today's court session is over. You may all leave." Seeing that the argument below had paused slightly, the emperor immediately perked up and hurriedly spoke.
"Yes, Your Majesty, we take our leave." Although some below wanted to continue speaking, they were pulled back by their colleagues and bowed to take their leave. However, after leaving the court, the civil and military officials all gave a cold snort, like fighting cocks, before departing.
After the main hall was quiet, only the emperor, the general, and the prime minister remained in the court. The emperor rubbed his temples with both hands and murmured, "Finally, it's quiet."
"Your Majesty, why bother with these ministers?" Guo Xiong gave a wry smile and shook his head.
"Whether they are civil officials or military generals, they are all pillars of the nation, wholeheartedly devoted to the country and its people. How could I possibly disappoint them? Alas, this matter... I cannot tell them about it." The emperor's face showed bitterness and helplessness, and he sighed deeply.
"Your Majesty is a wise and sagacious ruler. Not only does he toil for the country day and night, but he also considers the needs of his ministers in everything he does. This is truly a great blessing for the country and a boon for all the people. However, Your Majesty should also take care of your health." Prime Minister Lin bowed deeply, his words sincere.
"There's no one else here, so let's get straight to the point. Guo Xiong, how's the intelligence gathering going?" The emperor waved his hand and asked directly about the matter that concerned him most at the moment.
"As we predicted, the military movements of the Fanli Kingdom were indeed secretly orchestrated by the cultivation community of the Fanli Kingdom. It seems that this is another open and covert struggle between cultivation sects. The mortals and civilians of the two countries are merely pawns used by the cultivation communities and immortal sects of the two countries to test each other." Guo Xiong reported truthfully, his expression showing helplessness and a hidden anger.
"As expected, but even so, you should make preparations and do your best to deal with the upcoming great battle." The emperor said solemnly after a moment of contemplation.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do so. In addition, for this campaign, should we unite with the Tianxiang Kingdom in the north, the Liao Kingdom in the east, and the other eight kingdoms in the northeast to send troops together? After all, these small countries are usually protected by my Huoyu Kingdom. If my Huoyu Kingdom suffers a mishap, they will also be affected." Guo Xiong accepted the order, but at the same time, he remembered another matter and suddenly spoke up.
"No need," the emperor said. "More than a month ago, these small countries sent me letters, saying that their countries were suffering from natural disasters and man-made calamities, and asking for my understanding. They also sent a large amount of gold and silver, saying that they could provide some financial support. By the way, I will send two boxes to your residences later." The emperor's face turned somewhat ugly, and he finally spoke with a self-deprecating tone.
"Your Majesty is joking. These countries have been doing this for over a month now, and there's something very wrong with that. Could it be that some kind of consensus has been reached within the cultivation world?" Prime Minister Lin shook his head with a wry smile and asked, expressing his conjecture.
"That's probably it, Prime Minister Lin. In the cultivation world of my Fire Feather Kingdom, the Kongsang Sect is the most respected. You have always been in charge of contacting this sect regarding important national affairs. This time, I'm sending you again to investigate the situation in the cultivation world and to seek our strategies for dealing with the great war between us mortals." The Emperor commanded the Prime Minister in a deep voice.
"Yes, this old minister will take his leave now to prepare for this matter." Lin Anbang's expression hardened, and he turned to leave.