: A Gift from the Emei Sect, Delivered to Zhou Zhiruo!

Ying Changqing said to Abbess Miejue, "Yuanzhou must be returned to the hands of Shenzhou."

"When you decide to destroy the Ming Cult, let me know in advance, and I will be there!"

He readily agreed to help Yuanzhou expel the foreign tribes and restore the land of China, and Abbess Miejue immediately bowed in excitement.

"I deeply admire the prince's righteousness!"

"Master, there's no need for such formalities. We are all people of China, and we cannot tolerate being bullied by foreigners."

"I have something urgent to attend to. If you don't have anything else, I won't keep you any longer."

Abbess Miejue did not get up, but looked at Zhou Zhiruo.

"Your Highness, persuading the various martial arts factions to support Great Qin is a very important matter."

"Moreover, the journey is long and it is estimated that it will take one or two years."

"If you don't refuse, why not let Zhiruo stay by your side to serve you?"

"In this way, once I have a message, I can use the Emei carrier pigeon to notify Zhiruo, making communication convenient."

Upon hearing her master's question, Zhou Zhiruo immediately lowered her head and blushed.

A blush rose to her fair cheeks, making her look as beautiful as a peach blossom.

His fingers unconsciously crossed in front of him, making him appear very tense.

Ying Changqing turned to look at the shy Zhou Zhiruo.

Zhou Zhiruo is very talented; she is definitely a genius.

With a little guidance, he can become a valuable assistant.

Even without learning martial arts, just her face, which is so similar to Gao Yuanyuan's but even more pure and beautiful, is worth taking into the guild.

More importantly, only by accepting Zhou Zhiruo could he tie his own interests to those of the Emei Sect, thus making Abbess Miejue work even harder for him.

Ying Changqing would certainly not refuse such a good offer.

"Then thank you very much, Master."

Ying Changqing agreed, and Abbess Miejue was very satisfied.

"Your Highness, there's no need to be so polite. With the Qin cavalry recovering Yuanzhou and Miss Zhiruo by our side, our Emei Sect will receive special treatment."

"With the full support of the imperial court, we can suppress Wudang and Shaolin and become the strongest sect in Yuanzhou. That will be entirely possible."

Abbess Miejue stood up and whispered to Zhou Zhiruo, "Zhiruo."

"You will be the prince's maid, and at the same time, you will be responsible for contacting the Emei Sect."

"The most important thing is to take good care of the prince's life; there can be no negligence whatsoever, understand?"

"Master, Zhiruo has remembered."

Abbess Miejue nodded in satisfaction.

She believed that since Zhiruo was so gentle, Ying Changqing would definitely like her.

"Your Highness, once we return to Yuanzhou, I will immediately contact our allies to request support. I will inform Miss Zhiruo of any progress."

"The journey back to Yuanzhou is long, and it is getting late. I shall take my leave now."

"Please take care, nun."

Zhou Zhiruo was always prepared to sacrifice herself for the Emei Sect.

She watched her master's departing figure, so nervous she could hardly breathe.

She knew there was no going back now, so she looked down at Ying Changqing.

"Your Highness is truly a banished immortal."

She was no longer afraid; instead, she felt a little shy.

At this moment, Ying Changqing spoke while holding a teacup.

"Miss Zhou, do you know Zhang Wuji?"

"Zhang Wuji? Does Your Highness know him?"

Zhou Zhiruo was surprised that Ying Changqing would mention Zhang Wuji.

"I met Zhang Wuji by the Han River when I was a child, but I haven't seen him for many years."

Ying Changqing nodded and remained silent.

"Things in this world are affected by the butterfly effect, but not absolutely."

"Zhang Wuji will definitely appear when the six major sects besiege Bright Peak."

"We must prepare in advance, otherwise we will not be able to control the Ming Cult."

Seeing Ying Changqing remain silent, Zhou Zhiruo, though still having questions, did not ask any further.

She is now merely Ying Changqing's maid.

The atmosphere became very quiet.

Ying Changqing ignored Zhou Zhiruo, rested his chin on his hand, and pondered, looking for a proxy for Yuanzhou.

The problem is that without help to handle administrative affairs, spiritual practice will be neglected.

"They must be loyal, and they can't be incompetent either. Who among the people I know is suitable?"

Ying Changqing thought for a moment, and two names came to mind: Zhao Min and Han Fei.

Zhao Min is Princess Yuanting, and she is very intelligent.

Once you've won her heart, loyalty is no longer a concern.

Therefore, Zhao Min, as the Empress, will not cause any problems in taking charge of Yuanzhou.

Her only flaw is that she has Mongolian blood.

Issuing the order directly would be met with resistance from the ministers.

With Han Fei added, Han Fei would issue government decrees, and Zhao Min would be responsible for reviewing them. This would both create checks and balances and ensure that the officials would accept them.

Han Fei was born into a noble family of one of the seven ancient states.

"This way, we can control Yuanzhou without neglecting our cultivation, which is the best of both worlds."

Ying Changqing nodded in satisfaction.

He stood up and looked at Zhou Zhiruo, who was stealing glances at him.

"Zhou Zhiruo, from now on you will be my sword-bearing maid. This sword is yours."

Ying Changqing handed the Qiuli Sword to Zhou Zhiruo.

"Yes, ma'am."

Zhou Zhiruo respectfully responded and accepted the Qiuli Sword with both hands. This sword was ranked ninth among the ten famous swords of the Great Qin Dynasty.

She carefully slung the sword behind her back.

Looking up, he saw Ying Changqing walk into the room and immediately followed.

Zhou Zhiruo was very nervous, her eyes filled with shyness.

Upon entering the room, he was stunned to see the three women: Jing Ni, Yan Fei, and Nangong Pu She.

She hadn't expected there to be other people in the room.

Ying Changqing walked over to the three women and asked with a smile, "Did you gain anything from the 'Stop' secret?"

The three women immediately surrounded Ying Changqing excitedly.

"Your Highness, the secret of the word 'stop' is very difficult to understand; I only understand a little bit of it."

"Even so, my strength has clearly increased."

"My lord, the secret of the word 'stop' is very powerful."

"Although Yin-Yang techniques cannot be directly stacked, their power can be greatly enhanced by using their principles."

Ying Changqing looked at the three women who were excitedly recounting their gains and nodded in satisfaction.

Let me introduce myself.

Ying Changqing pointed at Zhou Zhiruo.

"This is Zhou Zhiruo from the Emei Sect in Yuanzhou. She will be my maid from now on."

The three women didn't know when Ying Changqing had made contact with the Emei Sect, but they still greeted Zhou Zhiruo briefly.

"Jing Ni, you and Zhi Ruo are both water-based."

"You taught Zhiruo the Everlasting Spring Technique."

"Yes, Your Highness."

After saying that, Ying Changqing turned around and said a few words to Yan Fei.

Yan Fei blushed, lowered her head, and followed Ying Changqing into another room.

Nangong Pu watched them leave and snorted coldly.

"Your Highness, what are they doing?"

Zhou Zhiruo looked at the three women's flushed faces with confusion.

Jingni smiled and replied, "My sister is too naive. The prince will teach you later; you don't need to know now."

"Now I will teach you the Everlasting Spring Technique."

"But you must keep it a secret before you start practicing, and you can't tell anyone, including people from your Emei Sect."

Zhou Zhiruo nodded earnestly: "I remember, Sister Jingni, I swear I will never reveal it."

……

The next morning, at the foot of Mount Taiyi.

Ying Changqing's carriage was already parked there, and Jing Ni and the others were inside.

Only Ying Changqing stood by the carriage, carefully examining the Qiu Li sword, as if waiting for someone.

"This is indeed a fine sword."

While waiting for Xiaomeng, Ying Changqing looked at Qiuli Sword with such focus for the first time.

Some say that the Qiu Li Sword contains the profound principles of Taoism and can contain the vitality of heaven and earth.

When Zhuangzi, the second sage of Taoism, was writing "Free and Easy Wandering," the Qiuli Sword inspired him, and thus the sword has always been kept by the Taoist Tianzong.

"Zhuangzi gleaned the wisdom of 'Free and Easy Wandering' from the Qiu Li sword; what can I gain from that?"

Ying Changqing stared at the Qiu Li Sword, but strangely, he did not have an epiphany.

"There was no sudden enlightenment."

"Could the Qiu Li Sword be just one of the reasons for comprehending the 'Free and Easy Wandering,' or perhaps just one of the conditions?"

"I'm still missing other necessary conditions..."

Just as he was thinking, a silver-haired girl suddenly threw herself into Ying Changqing's arms.

"Your Highness, will you miss me?"

Xiaomeng hugged Ying Changqing tightly, her eyes filled with reluctance to part.