Chapter 796: Chapter 681: Promoted to Third Rank
That night, Lin Xiaosu lay on Kuang Lang, his thoughts drifting far away.
As for this position, it actually was quite inappropriate to speak of.
The ground was uneven, with sharp stones and fragments everywhere, making it really unsuitable for sleeping.
If he had to sleep, the most normal way would be for Lin Xiaosu to lie down with some beautiful woman resting on his chest, using him as a cushion.
With other women, this was always how Lin Xiaosu did things.
But when it came to being with Kuang Lang, the one doing this was Kuang Lang.
Her forte was her toughness and durability...
Lin Xiaosu’s thoughts flew back to the Kun Cang of days past, following that butterfly into the Jianghu journey of a certain elder brother...
That elder brother, he preferred to call him a true elder brother.
He was Gu Jian Youchen.
When traveling in the Jianghu, he was known as Jian Wuchen.
Jian Wuchen’s swordsmanship was extraordinary, his heart unstained, a light-clad white horse, free in the secular world.
However, one day, he encountered a Reincarnation Saintess named Du Yuexin.
Du Yuexin played music by the lake and danced under the moon, accompanying him through the longest romantic segment on his Jianghu journey, and silently cast a soft veil over his Sword Heart.
He didn’t want his Sword Heart to be veiled; he didn’t want the carefree extravagance of his Jianghu path to deviate.
He fled from her in a distance.
However, on a moonlit night, under the faraway Sword Gate Pass, Du Yuexin caught up with him.
That night marked a turning point in all the worldly roads, and they consummated their love.
The next day, the rakish Jian Wuchen ran away again.
This time, Du Yuexin traversed the Jianghu but couldn’t find him, and in despair, she cut her hair to become a nun.
This passage came from the mouth of today’s Gu Jian Youchen.
Lin Xiaosu felt his "stained" self.
Entering this world, in the Heart Pavilion’s archives, he saw things related to Du Yuexin, and her place of ordination was indeed Luohua Temple.
He also saw images of Sword Gate Pass.
That grand pass under the moonlight was infinitely desolate.
It seemed innately clad in life-and-death separations...
In the following three days.
There were neither winds nor waves.
Lin Xiaosu was perfecting his deep fusion process between his Primordial Spirit and all his cells, teasing Fu Fu, or more often, being teased by Fu Fu, each teasing leaving him utterly undone.
Fu Fu willingly bore the brunt of this torment without complains; the key issue was that this suffering wasn’t fair since Lin Xiaopiao had means to relieve himself—stepping out of his room, greeting Kuang Lang, then heading to that familiar cave.
Kuang Lang’s greatest advantage was fully manifested.
No matter how much passion Lin had, she could absorb it all with her strength.
Afterwards, she would just close her eyes, rest for half a shichen, and then return to her post invigorated, clad in her thousand-jin heavy armor, her Spirit entirely poised atop the flagship.
Ning City and the Six Mansions beneath it were without any upheaval.
The remaining Six Sects fulfilled their promises, having all associates of the longstanding unresolved cases related to the Ministry of Justice, be they Outer Disciples, Inner Sect Disciples, Saint Heirs, or elders, all tied up and escorted to Ning City under the public eye, handing them over to the chief clerk of the Ministry of Justice to write off the cases.
Properties amassed over a thousand or even several thousands of years were all handed over, and the floating wealth was distributed among the populace of each mansion.
In Ning City, every day countless citizens came to kneel outside the tavern where Lin Xiaosu stayed.
In other provinces and prefectures of Jiangnan, although the rapid currents of change weren’t visible at present, many things were quietly changing, the biggest being that almost every sect had become more restrained.
Flagrant oppression that was usual was entirely ceased, and sect Heavenly Prides, who once rampaged across major cities, had become much more rational.
Within the sects, all sect masters emerged from seclusion.
Sect meetings were held every day.
No one knew what these sects were conspiring.
But one thing was clear: the Jiangnan Cultivation Path had truly been shaken; no sect could maintain a calm demeanor.
On the third day, after consecutive days of drizzling rain, the skies finally cleared.
Looking at the autumn sky and refreshing Moon Lake, many literati began reciting, among the most recited lines was "A lone crane soars through the sky’s clouds, inspiring a poetic spirit to the azure celestial heights."
As soon as it cleared up, a beautiful rainbow stretched across the sky.
At the rainbow’s end, a golden bridge suddenly appeared.
The rainbow connecting with the golden bridge formed such an incomparably beautiful sky painting, capturing everyone’s attention.
Atop the tavern, Lin Xiaosu, who was enjoying a shoulder massage from Fu Fu, snapped his eyes open.
Beside him, Zhang Tao also suddenly turned his head.
Zhang Tao had become much more tactful, usually never looking while Fu Fu massaged his lord’s shoulders, but now, upon this glance, seeing the anomaly in the sky, an immense light glowed in his eyes: "My Lord, someone from Beijing is here!"
Above the sky, auspicious clouds abounded.
Three Dragon Horses crossed the imperial road on the golden bridge and arrived.
A eunuch stood before the Dragon Horses, loudly declaring, "The Emperor has a decree, Fourth-rank Chief Inspector Su Lin and Fourth-rank Record Keeper Zhang Yiran, receive the decree!"
With a whoosh, a person flew up from the Prefectural Magistrate Mansion.
It was Zhang Yiran.
Another flew up from the tavern rooftop, it was Lin Xiaosu.
The two landed simultaneously on the sky-high golden bridge to receive the decree!
"By the Emperor’s mandate: Fourth-rank Chief Inspector Su Lin has been overseeing Jiangnan, and his actions are closely aligned with my intentions; thus, he is appointed as the Standard Third-Grade Vice Minister of the Supervision Institute, in charge of inspecting under heaven; Fourth-rank Record Keeper Zhang Yiran of Huzhou has reorganized Huzhou orderly and with ability and virtue, thus is appointed as the Standard Third-Grade Huzhou Governor, acting in the capacity of Prefect!"
"Thank Your Majesty for His Grace!" Lin Xiaosu received the decree.
Zhang Yiran was in total shock, for a moment his spirit soared beyond the heavens, but with a gentle nudge from Lin Xiaosu, he also hastily received the decree.
Ning City erupted into overwhelming cheers.
