Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 708 - 638: The He Family
ACHOO—
In the backyard of the Golden City Mansion, Li Ang sneezed. The Mill Blade hovering in his palm slowly ceased cutting the metal plate.
On the opposite side of the metal plate, He Fanshuang, wearing safety goggles, lifted her head and asked indifferently, "What’s wrong?"
"Nothing."
Li Ang shook his head, suppressed his doubts, took the coat handed over by Chai Chai, and put it on.
Most of their classmates from the Academic Palace had already taken jobs far away. However, Li Ang and He Fanshuang, still in Chang’an, wanted to do whatever they could for the Yu Country. For instance, improving the talisman board for the next generation of Spiritual Energy Machines, enhancing efficiency, and reducing manufacturing costs.
This project should have been a collaboration with Dr. Su Feng. However, for some unknown reason, Dr. Su Feng had been staying in the Mountain Master’s original study and rarely met with anyone. Li Ang and the others had been turned away several times when they visited.
"How about we make this area thinner?"
"To increase the Spiritual Energy flux... Hmm, then this part would need to be thickened..."
The two discussed the talisman board’s configurations. Their years of collaboration significantly boosted their efficiency.
Unbeknownst to them, the sun had set, and they had already completed three-quarters of the talisman board’s engraving. It would only take two more days to form a preliminary plan. Thereafter, they would progressively refine it until the final product was ready.
"Time for dinner!"
Chai Chai’s call came from the living room. Li Ang took off his goggles and asked He Fanshuang, "Shall we eat here?"
"No."
He Fanshuang shook her head and placed her gloves on a nearby grapevine rack. "My brother and sister-in-law returned today, so I’ll eat at home."
He Siping had gotten engaged last year to his longtime girlfriend, who was also his classmate from the Academic Palace. They had originally planned to marry this June, but the floods in Xingzhou forced them to postpone it. However, this didn’t prevent He Siping from officially establishing his family and moving into a new house in Changle Square to live.
Therefore, Li Ang didn’t try to keep her, watching He Fanshuang’s figure as she walked out of the courtyard.
He returned to the living room, finished dinner with Chai Chai as usual, and then wrote in the study. Meanwhile, his Heart Thought was cast into a cave outside Chang’an City.
BOOM BOOM—
Within the soundproofed cave, the roaring was deafening.
Hundreds of tendrils made from Mo Si were assembling a massive structure of some kind.
It still wasn’t enough.
Even if Mo Si were fully unleashed and he could match a Martial Arts Grandmaster, it still wouldn’t be sufficient to face the tumult of the coming years.
More power was needed...
「Shengping Square.」
"I’m back."
He Fanshuang pushed open the door to her home. Her parents were there, along with her brother He Siping, who was often busy and seldom home. Her soon-to-be sister-in-law, Ying Banqing, was also present. They were all waiting by a dining table laden with dishes.
"Visiting Golden City Square again?" He Siping teased. "Let’s eat."
"It’s official business from the Academic Palace," He Fanshuang seriously clarified before sitting down next to Ying Banqing.
Ying Banqing was a year younger than He Siping. She was lively, cheerful, and a good conversationalist. She currently held a position at the Imperial Palace, responsible for guarding the school-aged Princes and Princesses.
As the family ate and chatted at the dining table, the conversation eventually turned to official matters.
"...Those Haotian believers are really annoying. Because of them, it’s now inconvenient to even enter or exit the city gates," Ying Banqing held her chopsticks and complained incessantly.
During this period, Haotian believers continuously flocked to Chang’an from all over the Yu Country. These groups neither resisted officials nor harassed others. They only visited the Haotian Temple in Chang’an City to pray for blessings for the Haotian Sect Leader, who was miles away.
During the day, they performed prostrations with every step, blocking the roads. At night, they dispersed, either staying with relatives or finding lodging at inns and taverns.
The court was quite troubled by this. The Yu Country had not banned the worship of Haotian, nor were there any laws preventing the common people from making pilgrimages. Therefore, they couldn’t simply arrest them all, as that might incite greater turmoil.
"In the words of Esteem Shen Tu, these fanatic Haotian believers are like gaunt, timid wolves in the wilderness. Their audacity is proportional to their numbers."
Ying Banqing waved her chopsticks and said, "One or two are not to be feared. Even a lone merchant with a wooden stick can easily drive them away.
"But if they gather in groups of nine or ten, they dare to prey on humans.
"If their numbers reach the hundreds or thousands, they would dare to charge head-on even against well-equipped armies.
"Don’t be fooled by their current docility; once they exceed a certain number, who knows what they might do."
"What should we do then? Is there no way to control them?" Mrs. He asked anxiously. Her children had been educated at the Academic Palace, and her son and daughter-in-law both worked for the court. Of course, she unconditionally supported the Yu Country.
"There are ways. They’re already being implemented," Ying Banqing said. "I heard from a classmate that the court plans to first raise the accommodation, food, and beverage prices at Chang’an inns. Haotian is false, but hunger is real. Believers without money will naturally leave.
"Then, they will identify the leaders among them and target their weaknesses."
"Weaknesses?" Mr. He asked curiously.
"There will always be people they care about," Ying Banqing set down her clean dishes and utensils casually. "For example, word might be spread that their parents are ill, their siblings have been assaulted, or their children have gone missing. Even if the truth of such news is uncertain, they would feel compelled to return and check to be at ease, right?
"This way, another group is filtered out. And when they want to come back to Chang’an, we just need to restrict their travel permits and official documents, preventing them from returning.
"Without their followers’ support, the remaining die-hard believers in Chang’an City won’t be able to stir up much trouble."
Ying Banqing spoke about the intricacies with a relaxed face, yet her tone didn’t hide her disgust for these fanatic Haotian believers.
As a student of the Academic Palace who had traveled to other countries, she had seen firsthand the living conditions of common people under other regimes.
The Zhou Kingdom retained slavery, treating people as commodities that could be bought and sold in the market.
Turkic serfs served their lords for generations, treated worse than livestock.
The people in Jing Country were ignorant and numb, viewing Haotian as the only path to salvation. Peasants were even willing to burn their food as tribute to Haotian, forcing their families to endure hunger.
These were all kingdoms deeply devoted to Haotian. Ying Banqing couldn’t understand how people living in the Yu Country could ever want their own nation to become like that.
If the fanatics were aristocrats, it would be understandable, as they wouldn’t starve. However, from her observations these days, the most fervent believers were predominantly common people.
"Alright, alright, it’s rare to be home. Let’s not talk about these unsettling matters." He Siping smiled, stood up, and picked up the dishes from the table, intending to take them to the sink for washing.
ZING—
A crisp sound emanated from the Imperial Palace waist token at his side. He Siping used Telekinesis to suspend the dishes and utensils in mid-air while he picked up the waist token to examine it closely.
"What’s wrong?" Ying Banqing noticed the serious expression on her fiancé’s face and asked with a frown.
"Taihao Mountain," He Siping put down the waist token and said solemnly, "has issued a proclamation of war against the Yu Country."
