Chapter 90: Chapter 84: I Want a Treasure Saber
"Old Zhang, thanks! I’ll treat you to drinks and a meal some other day!" Li Rushan said with a laugh.
"Yeah, yeah, just get out of here," Zhang Jinghuai said with a look of disdain.
Li Rushan chuckled, put on his clothes, and left with Jiang Che.
After leaving Tingzhu Garden, the two of them headed toward the innermost part of Seven Stars Castle.
Jiang Che was quite eager to meet the legendary Li Hanchuan, the number one expert in Lin Yuan City.
He couldn’t help but picture an otherworldly master, his temples grayed but his bearing still dashing and elegant.
"Senior Li, I was wondering, what kind of person is the Gang Leader?"
Jiang Che suddenly asked.
"The Gang Leader? Hard to say... But you’ll know when you see him. In short, he’s very... unique," Li Rushan said after a moment of thought.
"Unique?" Jiang Che was baffled.
"Mhm. When you meet him later, no matter how surprised you are, remember not to say anything out of line," Li Rushan warned.
"Mhm..."
Hearing Li Rushan’s words, Jiang Che grew even more curious.
The two walked to the deepest part of Seven Stars Castle.
An elegant courtyard filled with classical charm appeared before them.
Two guards stood at the courtyard entrance, sabers in hand.
Their Qi Blood was abundant. Jiang Che could tell at a glance that they were Iron Skin Realm Martial Artists.
’Even Iron Skin Realm Martial Artists are just guards here,’ he thought to himself. ’The Seven Stars Gang is truly powerful.’
When the guards saw Li Rushan arrive with someone, they hurried inside to announce them.
Not long after, a guard returned and said they could enter.
Li Rushan nodded and led Jiang Che through the main gate.
The pair crossed the courtyard and arrived before a spacious hall.
Jiang Che looked up and saw that inside the hall, a woman in a magnificent robe, her hair adorned with jeweled pins and flowers, had her back to them. She seemed to be embroidering something.
Jiang Che looked around but saw no one else.
"Where’s the Gang Leader?" Jiang Che asked in a low voice.
"Isn’t that him right there?" Li Rushan said.
Jiang Che was stunned.
’Li Hanchuan is a woman?!’
The two walked in. Li Rushan said, "Gang Leader!"
The figure stopped what she was doing and slowly turned around.
Jiang Che was taken aback.
If it weren’t for the Adam’s apple, Jiang Che would have thought this was a beautiful woman with strikingly handsome features.
He had never expected that Li Hanchuan was actually a cross-dresser!
As for the man’s age, Jiang Che couldn’t quite tell.
His face looked young, but his hair had strands of white.
And upon closer inspection, there were wrinkles at the corners of his eyes that couldn’t be hidden.
What shocked him even more...
...was that this Gang Leader showed no trace of Qi Blood whatsoever!
He looked like a completely ordinary person!
But he knew that the person before him was Li Hanchuan, the number one expert in Lin Yuan City, who had reached a Realm beyond Force Integration!
It was a Realm he had never even heard of!
"Elder Li, you’ve arrived," Li Hanchuan said with a smile.
His voice was deep and raspy, a complete mismatch with his appearance.
"And this is?" He turned to Jiang Che, a question in his eyes.
Li Rushan quickly said, "This is the Jiang Che I mentioned to you."
Li Rushan, who was usually so carefree, was uncharacteristically nervous in front of the Gang Leader!
"So it is Fellow Jiang." Li Hanchuan slowly walked over.
"Greetings, Gang Leader!" Jiang Che said, cupping his fist.
"Are you a little surprised? That the legendary Gang Leader of the Seven Stars Gang is an oddball who dresses as a woman?" Li Hanchuan chuckled.
Jiang Che couldn’t tell if Li Hanchuan was just making small talk or testing him. After some thought, he answered earnestly, "I am a little surprised, but this junior believes that what clothes one likes to wear and how one chooses to dress is a matter of personal freedom. As long as it doesn’t harm others, anything is acceptable."
A strange light flashed in Li Hanchuan’s eyes as he murmured:
"Personal freedom..."
He then shook his head and said:
"But if everyone thinks you’re strange and tries to stop you, do you think you still have that freedom?"
"Then you just have to be stronger than those who try to stop you. I imagine no one can stop you now, Gang Leader," Jiang Che said with a smile.
"Even if no one stops me, they will always look at me with strange eyes. How do you resolve that?" Li Hanchuan stared at Jiang Che.
"You have the freedom to wear whatever you want, but they also have the freedom to look at you strangely. There is no inherent hierarchy of right or wrong between these freedoms. As long as their actions don’t infringe upon your freedom, you should allow them the freedom to look at you as they please," Jiang Che said after a moment of thought.
"For you to say that... are you not afraid of me?" Li Hanchuan’s voice suddenly turned cold.
Cold sweat broke out on Li Rushan. He secretly tugged on Jiang Che’s sleeve, signaling for him to stop talking.
"I’m not. This junior believes that as long as I am not slandering or insulting anyone, I should also have freedom of speech. It’s the same principle as your freedom to dress as you please, Gang Leader."
Jiang Che met Li Hanchuan’s gaze and spoke with calm composure.
"Do you really, from the bottom of your heart, believe I have the freedom to dress this way?"
Li Hanchuan pressed.
Jiang Che fell silent.
A trace of disappointment flashed in Li Hanchuan’s eyes.
Jiang Che took a deep breath and began to speak slowly:
"This junior believes that everyone is born with the freedom to dress as they please. It’s only the societal norms and etiquette of a given time that restrain people’s minds. But societal norms and etiquette change completely with the times. People, however, are always people. Regardless of the era or the country, human joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness are all the same. As humans, we have aesthetic needs. We want to adorn ourselves. We long for the acceptance of others. When we’re lonely, we want to find someone to talk to. When we’re wronged out in the world, we want to go home. Perhaps a thousand years from now, this world will become a place where anyone can wear whatever they want and say whatever they want."
