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Chapter 77 Talents

Late that night, Prince An’s Manor was still bright. Between the courtyards, there were guards patrolling from time to time.

Li Ye, while holding the Official Seal of the Magistrate of the Chang’an Office, closed his eyes and felt it.

After a long time, he opened his eyes, put down the Official Seal, and sighed internally. “The Luck of a Four-class official can’t increase my cultivation to a Level 5 of Qi-refining. From now on, the breakthrough of levels has needed more and more Luck.”

He got up and went to his window and looked out at the scene of the manor. With his hands clasped behind his back, he said to himself, “The Luck of the Four-class official only increased my cultivation to the later period of Level 4 Qi-refining. To further enhance my cultivation, I will need extra Luck.”

He was thinking about this when Song Jiao suddenly came over to him and told him something about the Black Office.

The Black Office was the intelligence agency established by Song Jiao.

“Today, we have received two Level 4 Qi-refining cultivators whose cultivations are the highest of this group, but their salaries are also the highest, accordingly.” Standing beside Li Ye, Song Jiao said, “Although there is still a lot of money left from what you gave me before, at this current rate, I’m afraid it will soon be used up.”

Li Ye nodded and said, “The shops in Chang’an City and the fields outside the city will be paying rent soon. Then I’ll give you more money... How many people are there in the Black Office?”

Song Jiao answered, “Thirty-six.”

Li Ye was a little confused. “That’s all?”

Song Jiao glanced at Li Ye. “I put quality before quantity. First of all, the people I want must have achieved Qi-refining. Secondly, I have to test their mental abilities. I would never want evil or underqualified people.”

Li Ye nodded. Since they were all Qi-refining cultivators, it was not surprising that their pay was high. Song Jiao must have chosen the right people, which was evident in their ability to find the place where Lu Yan had hid his beauty.

With this in mind, Li Ye could not help but look at Song Jiao and what he saw shocked him.

With the help of his Dragon Qi, Li Ye saw red Qi floating above Song Jiao’s head and its tendrils tried to converge on him. It was Song Jiao’s Luck.

The cultivation level of the hundreds of guards in the manor was low, so their Luck appeared white. But, Song Jiao’s was red since her cultivation was much higher.

In addition, many small airflows around the red Qi concealed an ocean of cloud which was surrounded by the red airflow.

Li Ye’s gaze became cold. With his understanding of Luck, it was not difficult for him to think that the small airflows would be the Luck of other cultivators in the Black Office which was under her command. Now they converged towards her.

But, Song Jiao didn’t have any Dragon Qi in her body and could not really absorb the luck and transform it into the power of cultivation. Moreover, their Luck did not really integrate into her Luck. They just surrounded her Luck. This showed that the cultivators of the Black Office only obeyed her, but were not fully loyal to her.

Realizing this, Li Ye suddenly came up with an idea.

Most of the guards in the manor had low cultivation and their capacity and fortune remained ordinary and they were destined to achieve ordinary results. So, the strength of their Luck was not great. But, the cultivators in the Black Office had a much higher cultivation and their Luck was more powerful. “If they would be loyal to me, I would be able to further improve my cultivation,” thought Li Ye.

Nevertheless, it was too difficult for cultivators of Jianghu and outlaws to truly be loyal to anyone.

Li Ye was not discouraged when he realized this but focused his eyes on Song Jiao’s Luck. The red Qi tended to converge towards him, but it did not completely come to him. This showed that Song Jiao was loyal to him, but just not enough.

“Song Jiao was my father’s subordinate. This time she returned to Chang’an in order to avenge my father. However, it’s not surprising that she would have some loyalty for me after getting along with me for several days.” Li Ye thought.

Since Li Ye had met Song Jiao, he has killed Li Guanshu, then assassinated Kang Chengxun, and now he has subdued Lu Yan. Song Jiao admired Li Ye’s mental wisdom. Moreover, Li Ye now was a Four-class official and supported by Wand Duo and others. His influence would not be underestimated.

Weren’t those the reasons Song Jiao had been loyal to Li Xian previously?

“She had been loyal to my father, now it’s possible for her to be loyal to me. I just need a chance.” Li Ye thought.

Li Ye was quite jealous of Song Jiao’s Luck. After all, it was a Red Qi. Even Lu Yan’s Luck wasn’t better than hers. Seeing as Lu Yan was the second most powerful official in the court.

Li Ye thought in his mind, “Her cultivation is beyond my expectation. She might have concealed her strength when she dealt with Li Guanshu and Kang Chengxun. In addition, she is a disciple of the White Deer Sect of the Bailu Cave and has great intelligence and capacity. It makes sense that she has a Red Qi. But, it is still frightening enough.” He felt that if Song Jiao could be truly loyal to him, he would be able to greatly improve his cultivation!

“Why do you always stare at me?” When Song Jiao asked this question, she suddenly felt dizzy and unstable. She held her forehead and stepped back as her face turned pale.

Li Ye quickly took back his gaze and reached out to help Song Jiao. “Are you okay?”

“Do... you have knockout drops in this room? What are you going to do to me?” Song Jiao felt dizzy and tried her best to stand firm, then she immediately looked at Li Ye with vigilance as if she was looking at a hooligan.

Li Ye felt embarrassed but he couldn’t explain. Watching Song Jiao escape from his control, he could only laugh embarrassingly. “You think too much.”

Fortunately, Song Jiao soon cleared her mind. If not, she might have started a fight. She looked at Li Ye strangely and instinctively felt that she could not stay here any longer. “I’m all right. I’m leaving...”

When she left, she was muttering, “Why did I faint when he looked at me? Has he practiced a technique that can enchant people? But, there’s no man who practices that!”

Seeing that Song Jiao had gotten far, Li Ye opened his mouth but couldn’t speak.

Li Ye continued to think about his problem of cultivation. Song Jiao’s situation inspired him, and he gradually realized. “Each person has his own life, so the Luck of each person is different. Those who are talented and have high cultivation, their Luck has greater power and would be more effective in improving my cultivation... It seems that it is time for me to collect a group of real talents. It won’t just improve my cultivation but also help with my future pursuit of success.”

Currently, Li Ye and, Lu Yan were seeking to overthrow Wei Baoheng. This was a big move. No one knew whether there would be simmering danger or a fierce battle in the future. Before that, it would be extremely useful to upgrade his cultivation, even a little.

In addition, the world was about to be chaotic. Li Ye’s plan was to take office in a vassal state, seek opportunities to fight for the domination of the world, and achieve the True Dragon. So, he needed real talents to assist him. The more advisors and good generals he had, the better. To manage the vassal state in the future, he also needed talents of all aspects.

Fortunately, Li Ye was born again. He had heard about the brilliant talents that worked separately for the feudal princes after the Chaos of Huang Chao.

Li Ye thought, “At present, there are many talents near Chang’an City, but most of them are in a good situation. It would be impossible for them to work for me if I ask them rashly, even though I am the Grand Prince. However, there are a few who are not in a good situation and I can try to persuade them...”

Thinking of this, Li Ye ordered people to call Song Jiao.

...

Magpie Bridge was located on Xuan Ping Lane of the eastern city. It was a busy place. Even at dusk, it was crowded with people and vehicles. On the street at the west end of Magpie Bridge, there was a calligraphy and painting stall. A young scholar was sitting behind the stall, reading a book.

Although it was called a calligraphy and painting stall, there happened to be just a grey cloth of four decimeters long and three decimeters wide laying on the ground. On which there were a few paintings and some calligraphy. The scholar squatting on the ground wore coarse clothes whose corners had been washed white. He was clean and tidy. The yellow-faced and thin-skinned scholar read carefully, ignoring the pedestrians.

One wouldn’t expect that there would be many deals at this calligraphy and painting stall. The calligraphy paintings looked good, but they were not finished by a famous calligrapher or painter. So, the real rich customers would not stop to look at them.

The sun was about to set. The ordinary scholar raised his head and looked at the neat painting and calligraphy stall. He sighed sadly. Suddenly, his stomach rumbled, which made him feel sadder.

After rolling up the gray cloth, the scholar put them under his arm and left Magpie Bridge. In a steamed stuffed bun shop not far away, he bought two steamed buns with his last two coins. In fact, the stuffed buns of this era were not stuffed, but the young scholar obviously didn’t care about that. Luckily, they were hot. He bent down and took a bite, his cheeks bulged, and he was quite satisfied.

“You’re a son-of-a-bitch, you thief! I’ll kill you!”

As soon as the scholar took a bite of the steamed bun, he saw a middle-aged man chasing a child. The middle-aged man was dressed in luxurious clothes while the child was in rags. He was about six years old and his exposed arms were as thin as firewood. He looked like a little beggar. Although he had tried his best to escape and protected his head with his hands, he suddenly fell to the ground and was kicked by the middle-aged man.

The scholar’s look changed quickly. He stopped eating, rushed over to them and grabbed the middle-aged man. He kindly advised him, “She’s only a child. You’re kicking her too heavily, she can’t bear it!”

The middle-aged man was furious. He looked the scholar up and down and sneered with disdain. “Who are you? A poor scholar would dare to stop me from taking care of my business? Get away!”

The young scholar picked up the child and blocked her by placing her behind him. He said to the middle-aged man, “You live an extravagant life, but she has little food to eat. If she stole some food from your family, you can scold her, but how can a gentleman hurt people?”

“Fuck you! You are a poor scholar from another place, don’t pretend to be nice to me. In my opinion, you are not a good man either. Did you ask this little beggar to steal? You’re a bastard, you son-of-a-bitch!” The middle-aged man knew that the scholar was not from Chang’an from his accent. He immediately had a sense of superiority. He straightened up at his waist to appear more domineering. As he said that, he rolled up his sleeves and was going to beat the scholar too.

The scholar became even angrier even though he had been in a good mood. He took out the documents to prove his identity and said angrily, “I am the Recommended Talent. You would dare to hurt me?”

There were two kinds of examinees for the civil examination for government degrees. One was the internal student, and the other was the recommended talent. Both of these examinees were Scholars. No one could offend a Scholar, otherwise, he or she would be investigated by the government.

The middle-aged man was shocked and stretched his neck to see the document in the Scholar’s hand. Seeing that the document was not a fake, he stopped shouting. However, he still flicked his sleeves and snorted, “You’re just a countryman. I don’t think you will pass the examination and become an Imperial Scholar!”

Regardless, the middle-aged man left.

The scholar was still angry, but he had no other way. With a sigh in his mind, he turned and squatted down and looked at the six- or seven-year-old girl in front of him. She still had the crumbs from a steamed bread still in her hand. At this time, she saw the middle-aged man walking away and started to stuff her mouth with the crumbs of steamed bread. But, there were too few crumbs.

The girl was dirty all over, and her face was stained with dirt, but her big eyes were bright and shown like jewels. Although she had been beaten and her arms were blue, she had not shed a tear, seeming very stubborn. Because of her stubbornness, she had been extremely pitiful when she stuffed her mouth with the crumbs of steamed bread.

The scholar sighed and thought about the state of the world. Then he handed a steamed bun to the girl and said softly, “Come on, here you go.”

The girl looked at the scholar and hesitated slightly. In the end, she couldn’t bear resist the tempting smell. She took the steamed bun and stuffed it into her mouth quickly. After a short time, she filled her small mouth with the stuffed bun and ate it quickly. She choked because she had eaten too fast. The scholar took more pity on her. While persuading her to slow down, he caressed her back and handed her the steamed bun that he had bitten to the girl.

In the crowd, the scholar squatted quietly in front of the girl and seemed to forget his sorrow at that moment.

Looking at the steamed bun in front of her, the girl shook her head. She still had the steamed bun in her mouth, so her pronunciation was muffled. “I’m full.”

“You just ate a steamed bun, how can you be full? Eat it.” The scholar’s smile was pure and peaceful. The sunset sprinkled on his shoulder and melted into his smile. The girl looked at her motionlessly and hesitated for a while. Finally, she took the steamed bun slowly, pulled it into two pieces and handed the big half to the scholar. “We can eat it together.”

The scholar was shocked. Looking at the girl’s earnest and pure eyes, it felt like there were thousands of ants crawling in his heart at this moment and he felt very sad. After a while, he took the other half of the steamed bun.

“Why are you here alone? Where is your family?”

“I have no family.”

The scholar was silenced. He looked up and saw the direction of the sunset. In the noisy crowd, and in the prosperous Chang’an City, there were still beggars, young beggars. He murmured, “We have to rectify the mind, cultivate the moral self, regulate the family, maintain the state rightly and make all peaceful. We, scholars, read the books of sages, are educated by our ancestors and do self-cultivation. But, how can we regulate such a world?”

The Scholar felt depressed.

“Would you like to come with me?” The scholar asked the girl. But, as soon as he said it, he thought about his own situation and laughed at himself. “I’m just a failed Scholar, and I can’t eat well. You might still not live well with me... But, as long as I have food, I’ll share with you.”

The girl looked at the scholar with wide eyes and blinked as if she thought the scholar was strange and unusual. Suddenly she opened her mouth and asked a question that stunned the scholar, “Can you teach me to learn?”

Learn?

The Scholar stunned for a while.

This beggar-like girl asked such a question at this time.

Shouldn’t she be more concerned about food?

“Yes. As long as you like, I can teach you the words I know and show you the books I have read.” The scholar nodded steadfastly. At that moment, it was as if a ray of the morning sun shining had streamed into his chest.

“Then I will go with you!”

The emaciated scholar, in a ragged dress, pulled the skinny girl, as they walked along the stream in the street under the sunset.

After a while, they came to a remote inn.

The inn was small and very decrepit and its business had not been good.

This was where the Scholar lived.

The civil examinations for the government degrees of the Tang Empire would be held once a year and the Scholar had failed to pass three times, but he did not leave. He wanted to pass the examination and become an Imperial Scholar. His hometown was far away from Chang’an City. It would cost him a lot of money and time if he went home and came back to Chang’an City. So, like many other scholars, he found a cheap place to stay and prepare for the exam.

When the Scholar entered the inn, he was stopped by the shopkeeper, “Childe Li, it’s time to pay for your meals.”

The Scholar pulled the girl’s hand and said strangely, “I gave you one thousand coins a month ago and didn’t I tell you that I would pay for the meal by working instead?”

The shopkeeper said indifferently, “You can’t work at all. You see, you have broken so many dished since you worked. Those dishes cost money. Your one thousand coins are not enough for the compensation. There’s no money to pay for your room and meals.”

The Scholar gritted his teeth. “How much do I have to pay?”

“Well, you still owe me two thousand coins.”

“Why so much? I only have one meal a day here and what I always get is leftovers.”

“What leftovers! What are you saying? You mean the store has treated you badly? I kindly take you in and give you food and shelter. You shouldn’t say that! Do you have any conscience?”

“But, I have worked...”

“You’re a worker? You’re a shopbreaker!”

“...”

The Scholar was so angry. He knew that the innkeeper was blackmailing him.

But, he really had no money at all.

He had no relatives in Chang’an City and no one could help him.

He looked back at the girl, whose eyes were open wide and full of doubt.

The Scholar’s heart softened when he saw her pure eyes.

He turned to the shopkeeper and said humbly, “I... I really have no money right now. I promise I won’t break any dishes in the future. I’ve done so much work. I’m familiar with it. Please give me more chance...”

“No way!” The shopkeeper waved his hands. “You either give me money or get out!”

The muscle of the Scholar’s face twitched.

At this time, there was a sudden thundering outside the door.

...

After a while, the Scholar, carrying his bookcase and quilt, walked out of the inn and onto the cold street with the girl. Heavy rain came unexpectedly. The dripping rain sounded like the world was laughing at him.

In a small pavilion not far from Magpie Bridge, the Scholar put down the bookcase and laid the quilt in a small area of the pavilion that had not been touched by the wind and rain. Then he asked the girl to rest.

The girl was very sensible. She laid down on the quilt without saying one more word.

During this season, it was very hot when the sun was shining, but it was quite cold when it rained. In addition, it was night.

The girl showed her obsidian-like eyes and looked at the Scholar who was standing in front of the curtain of rain with his hands clasped behind his back, without blinking.

The Scholar was so sad that he didn’t even know what to think about.

When life was in distress, should one think about how to get the next meal or how to achieve their ambition?

There was no next meal and no ambition.

There was nothing.

He was at a dead end.

For a long time, the sounds of rain grew louder and louder, and thunderstorms broke out one after another.

When the scholar returned to the girl and squatted down in front of her, he saw that she had opened her bright eyes. He could not help asking, “Now we have nowhere to go, you... if you follow me, you may not be better off than when you were alone...”

The Scholar did not go on talking because there was a momentary flash of grief and fear in the girl’s eyes as if she knew he was going to abandon her.

“Tomorrow I’ll go to find work in a shop. I have learned Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art. At least I can support us.” The Scholar changed his words. Under the oppression of life, it was painful and difficult for him to say that. Wasn’t that a betrayal of his life creed? “Even if I won’t pass the civil examination, I will not let us starve to death!”

The girl did not speak, but there were tears in her clear eyes.

“Sleep. Tomorrow, everything will be all right.” The Scholar showed a comforting smile.

We scholars’ read books of saints and learned from sages for what?

To regulate the country and the world?

To rectify the dynasty and seek well-being for the people of the world?

If the little girl in front of me can’t be saved, how can I talk about saving the people of the world?

Suddenly there was an unspeakable mood in the Scholar’s mind. He stood up, suddenly turned back, and stepped back out into the face of the heavy rain as he looked up at the sky.

This Confucian scholar, at this moment, burst into a magnificent atmosphere.

He took a step into the torrential rain.

Lightning flashed across the sky.

Then lightning struck the ground.

The Scholar fell down with this one step and became spirited at once. An Ocean of Qi suddenly emerged above his Elixir Field.

He achieved Qi-refining in one step!

...

“I never imagined that tonight I would witness, with my own eyes, a Confucian scholar achieve a successful understanding of Tao and achieve Qi-refining in one step.”

A man in a black robe walked from Magpie Bridge with an umbrella.

He stepped down and arrived at the pavilion from Magpie Bridge in an instant.

He took his umbrella, handed it to the woman in a purple robe behind him, and then made an obeisance by cupping one hand in the other before his chest to the Scholar. “Childe Li, I’m glad to meet you.”

This man was Li Ye.

The woman in purple was Song Jiao.

The Scholar startled. “Who are you? How do you know me?”

Li Ye smiled and said, “You’re Childe Li Zhen, how could I not know you?”

Li Zhen had failed his civil examinations many times. After the Huang Chao Uprising, he turned to the first emperor of the Liang Dynasty, Zhu Wen, also known as Zhu Quanzhong. He had made many outstanding achievements and was a minister of great importance to Zhu Wen. He served as a commissioner, an inspecting minister and later as a Minister of the Ministry of Finance.

He was one of the talents Li Ye had been looking for.

Li Zhen was more confused. “You are?”

Song Jiao timely said, “He is the Prince An and Vice Magistrate of the Chang’an Office.”

“Prince An?” Li Zhen stood stunned with an incredible look on his face.

Li Ye’s fame and deeds had spread throughout Chang’an City, and Li Zhen had heard them.

“Your Highness!” Li Zhen hurried to salute.

“Childe Li, you needn’t be so polite. Please get up soon.” Li Ye helped Li Zhen up. Without gossiping, he said directly, “Childe Li is a brilliant talent. I have read your articles. I really admire you. Today’s encounter is really fateful. How about moving to my manor? I’m eager to have a talk with you!”

The scholars who came to Chang’an City to attend the civil examination would gather together and write many articles with their literary friends, except when studying. The outstanding people in this area would be widely spread in Chang’an City. Li Ye said that he had read Li Zhen’s articles. That was the reason why he had written them.

Li Zhen hadn’t expected his article to be read by the Grand Prince of the Empire. He was surprised that his articles were highly praised. He was greatly moved by Li Ye’s sincere invitation. He did not want the little girl to be frozen here. So, he quickly agreed to the invite.

“This girl...”

“She’s Rui Mengmeng.”