Chapter 620
89 Inseparable
Chapter 620 Inseparable
Xue Hua looked at him steadily, not knowing how much he believed. He only asked, "If Japan knew your identity and made a fuss, it would become a matter between the two countries."
Xue Shao said calmly: "They won't know. Even if someone points out that I am the Imperial Censor of the Ming Dynasty, I won't admit it. Even if you beat me to death, I am just a frustrated scholar of the Ming Dynasty."
Xue Hua frowned and said unhappily: "What do you mean by life or death? Do you know how precious your life is? I have only seen three holy bodies like you. Are you going to die for such a small matter?"
Xue Shao raised his eyebrows and asked curiously, "Who else is there besides me among the three?"
Xue Hua: "...Are you focusing on the wrong thing?"
Xue Shao asked with a smile: "Is one of them Pan Yun?"
Xue Hua was silent.
Xue Shao nodded slightly: "That's her. Although I don't practice Taoism, I know from your words that it is difficult to achieve a level of cultivation like hers. Not only has she achieved it, she is also the youngest among all of them, which shows her talent."
Xue Hua was about to change the subject: "Although you have read a lot, your martial arts skills are average. Do you want to learn some magic from me to defend yourself?"
Xue Shao: "The third person should be from the Zhang family of Tianshi Mansion. Otherwise, how can the Zhang family command the Taoist sects in the world?"
Failed to change the topic.
Xue Hua: "...Do we have to talk about this?"
Xue Shao smiled faintly: "After all, most of the people on this ship are Taoists. We only have a superficial understanding of Japan, so we can no longer fool our own people. Only by knowing ourselves and the enemy can we win every victory."
Xue Hua just kept silent and waited for him to speak to see what he could say.
Xue Shao paced back and forth, whispering, "I remember when I was a child, my great uncle came back to see me. He just lamented that I didn't practice Taoism, but he didn't feel sorry for me. After all, our Xue family is a farming and reading family, and studying for the imperial examination and becoming an official was the right path for me. When I was about nine years old, my great uncle suddenly came back to see me and used all means to tempt me to practice Taoism."
To be honest, Xue Shao was really moved.
Who, when they were little, didn’t want to soar in the sky like an eagle, travel through space like a god, reach from one place to another, travel far away underground, and fly above all things?
Xue Taixu brought him to experience these things when he was nine years old. It was a fatal temptation for him, and he is still fascinated by them to this day.
Xue Shao really wanted to practice Taoism with Xue Taixu.
"Then why didn't you leave with your grandfather?"
Xue Shao smiled and said, "It was my second uncle. He asked me three questions, but I couldn't answer them. So I decided to think through those three questions before deciding whether to practice Taoism."
Later, the more he read and the more he knew, the more indifferent Xue Shao became to the matter of practicing Taoism.
No, it should be said that he was indifferent to Xue Taixu's way of cultivation. He was also pursuing the great way, but his way of pursuit was different.
"Although I didn't go with my great-uncle and he didn't reveal a single word, I think something must have happened in the Tianshi Mansion at that time." Xue Shao suddenly brought the topic back to the topic, and Xue Hua, who had just relaxed a little, was startled.
Xue Shao smiled at Xue Hua and nodded, "Sure enough, something happened to the genius of the Zhang family, right?"
Xue Hua: ...He hates geniuses.
Xue Shao: "Zhang Zhenren of the Tianshi Mansion has to live in the palace for a period of time every year, and preside over the ceremony of offering sacrifices to the heavens every one or two years. People often hear words of praise for him, but he is not young anymore, right? But no one has ever mentioned the young master of the Tianshi Mansion. Is it because he is dull and not talented enough to be promoted to shock the world? Or has something happened to him, so that his talent is gone?"
Xue Hua: ...He hates smart geniuses.
Not many people in the academy knew about Zhang Liuzhen's affairs. The junior brothers and sisters knew at most that the eldest brother was injured and not in good health. Now he has to retreat for a period of time every year to recuperate. In the world of Taoism, only the upper echelons can get some clues. The middle and lower echelons know very little, not to mention that there are even fewer people who know about it.
He can guarantee that according to official circles, if there is no one in three generations serving as an official of the fourth rank or above in the capital, no news will be heard at all.
After all, the dispute back then was confined to a circle by someone with ulterior motives, and even the palace acquiesced in their way of handling it.
If Xue Taixu wasn't his grandfather, and his grandfather was determined to allow the Xue family's geniuses to enter the Tianshi Mansion to assist, he would not have known all this.
But even so, he didn't know much.
All he knew was that there was a fight between the disciples of the academy and the Tianshi Mansion over inheritance and restructuring, resulting in heavy casualties. Even if he asked for more details, his grandfather would not tell him.
Xue Shao had been paying attention to his expression. After a brief thought, he said in deep thought, "It seems that this is related to the inheritance within the Tianshi Mansion. The genius of the Zhang family will not be hurt in their struggle for power. Will his talent be limited?"
Xue Hua opened his mouth and said with difficulty after a long while: "Please don't think about it."
He turned and walked away, deciding not to listen to him. If these words were to be reported back to the academy, he would be half dead.
Pan Jun, who was hiding in the corner and listening with great interest, became unhappy. He poked his head out and met Xue Shao's eyes when he turned around and looked at him.
The two of them blinked, and when Pan Yun saw that Xue Hua was about to leave, she quickly nodded at Xue Shao, urging him anxiously.
Xue Shao sighed, stopped Xue Hua, and asked, "Now that my uncle is no longer urging me to practice Taoism, are they interested in Pan Yun?"
Xue Hua looked confused: "What do you like about her?"
Xue Shao looked at him steadily for a while, then shook his head and said, "Nothing, go ahead."
Xue Hua: "...You don't think that there is any evil way in our Tianshi Mansion that we would use Pan Yun to treat our senior brother, do you?"
Xue Shao looked at him speechlessly, and after a moment of silence, he said, "I thought the Tianshi Mansion practiced the art of strategy, absorbing new geniuses to help consolidate power. It turns out there is also an evil art of using geniuses to control geniuses?"
Xue Hua was startled and immediately said, "You are right. I was overthinking. Forget what I said last time."
Xue Shao couldn't help but smile and asked, "Are Pan Yun and the senior brother you mentioned very close?"
Xue Hua opened his mouth but couldn't say anything for a long time.
Are they really that close, or is it the kind that all the students in the academy know about?
Xue Shao let Xue Hua leave.
Xue Hua quickly slipped away, deciding not to be alone with him again before getting off the boat.
As soon as Xue Hua left, Pan Jun came out from the corner and shook his head, "Xue Hua used to live in the same courtyard with me. He looked quiet and steady, and he spoke very little. I didn't expect that he could keep secrets. With just a few words, he knew everything about Longhushan Academy."
Xue Shao: "It's not his fault. He didn't reveal much. I just made this inference based on my uncle's previous words and deeds and the news I heard over the years."
"What news have you heard in these years?"
Xue Shao smiled and shook his head: "No, that's why I inferred it. The lack of news is a huge piece of information."
(End of this chapter)