Death… and me

Sitting in the carriage was Cheng Yun He. As he left the city's gate, his emotions were suddenly greatly aroused. Immediately, he stuck his head out and looked at the northern gate of the majestic city as it slowly shrunk in his eyes. He thought about his home, where his parents, wife, and children were. For many generations, his family had been people of Great Zhao. He was born in this capital and had grown up here. All in all, he had been living there for more than 40 years.

All of a sudden, he remembered a phrase: 'Born here, grow up here, and die here.'

He smiled bitterly and thought, "Living here does not mean growing up here. Growing up here does not mean dying here!" He seemed to be forcing these thoughts upon himself. He had a hunch that he might not be able to die in this Great Zhao, where he belonged.

A great man leaves his life behind on the battlefield; who would care about where he would be buried?

He could not help but recite these verses:

Going through thousands of miles of golden sand.

After forty years, there is no minding of death.

Sad autumn winds have turned all the hair white.

Endless troubles have made the heart colder.

After reciting these verses, he felt that it was not that good. It just seemed like something he was saying in the spur of the moment. Grinning, he thought, "Why is the last verse 'made the heart colder'? I was given a great responsibility by the minister. This journey is my greatest chance to make a difference and advance."

He shook his head and sat back in the carriage, not bothering to write down the verses that he had recited.

When Cheng Yun He left, it was late autumn. Leaves were falling all over the ground as the autumn winds blew gently under the gloomy sky. Thick layers of dark clouds were hanging above, making his heart feel like there was a heavy burden weighing him down.

…

Meanwhile, in Iron Cloud Citadel, Chu Yang had completed three challenges. Upon returning to Bu Tian Pavilion, he picked up a book and began reading diligently.

Wu Qian Qian frowned in puzzlement as she gazed at the tall pile of books that were on Chu Yang's desk.

When did our Minister Chu become so studious and start reading so diligently? This kind of focus that consisted of no rest, food or sleep was putting to shame all the scholars who had studied hard to become officials!

But…

If Minister Chu was reading up on strategies, arts of war, or something along the lines such as the history of the continent, then Wu Qian Qian would not have found it so strange.

Instead, this guy was reading books that the scholars would consider as inferior! There were 'Famous Love Stories' and other fictional stories. Moreover, he had also read some ridiculous supernatural fictions!

Those stories were not lengthy and were written by authors during their free time. They were written without meaning and were probably just used to coax children to sleep or behave…

This was really amusing to him!

Minister Chu read the book intensely. His mind seemed to be completely engrossed in it. His mouth was muttering the words as he read as if he was trying to memorize the stories word for word.

This left Wu Qian Qian speechless…

The worst part about all of this was that Minister Chu seemed to have become addicted. He would even laugh like an idiot ever so often!

This was a person wearing a black outfit and a hideous mask. This person was in a powerful position, yet he was reading a childish book and would burst out laughing every now and then!

Just thinking about this scene was enough to give people goosebumps, let alone having to witness it.

Wu Qian Qian was getting waves after waves of goosebumps. On the other hand, Minister Chu continued to giggle like an idiot. The most demeaning thing that he would do was to let his mind drift off as his eyes would contain just a blank stare. Following which, there would be some glistening drool coming from his mouth as he appeared to dream about some distant fantasy…

Reading books to the point that the spirit left the body… Furthermore, these were children's books… This had to be some sort of incredible spiritual state!

Wu Qian Qian muttered silently, "When will this long day pass?"

As she did some paperwork, a creepy, wicked laughter rose up from behind her. If Wu Qian Qian hadn't a sense of humor or patience, she would have smacked King of Hell Chu with that book. Next, he would splash tea on his face and pointed him in the direction of the door!

Furthermore, Wu Qian Qian was left speechless when she found out about the origin of these books. That King of Hell Chu had abused his power to send his powerful subordinates all over the place to search for them. Sending assassins to hunt for children's books, King of Hell Chu must be especially professional. Each person must bring back at least twenty books! Can't hold them? You will have to face corporal punishment!

Each time she imagined these fierce guys appearing helpless and so pitifully carrying piles of children's books into the room, Wu Qian Qian would nearly stop breathing as she tried to resist the urge to laugh.

This emotion of hers peaked when she saw Hall Leader Cheng carry a fresh stack of books in.

An old man with a wrinkly face was holding in his hands a stack of books gloomily.

Wu Qian Qian could not help but burst out laughing!

There was once when Minister Chu was deeply engrossed and the prince came to visit. He entered the room but Chu Yang was still reading his book calmly. Prince Tie Bu Tian's mouth had gaped in great surprise.

Immediately after, the prince posed a question to Wu Qian Qian that made her laugh uncontrollably each time she thought about it, "Ah, is Minister Chu trying to improve his intellect?"

As the leader of an intelligence network, a supervisor of an assassination group, as well as the minister of a spy organization, his actions truly left people at a loss for words…

The worst part of it all was the fact that he would come into his office each morning and say dejectedly, "I've just forgotten that story!"

Wu Qian Qian was beyond speechless!

What kind of a person was this?

Wu Qian Qian calculated that the books that Chu Yang had already read would easily fill up a few large chests!

What was especially unacceptable was the fact that besides enjoying reading children's books, this guy liked children's toys as well! Furthermore, he did not have any interest in toys that were meant for boys, instead, he liked toys that were meant for girls!

She had even witnessed this man holding a doll with dreamy eyes saying, "I must bring it back tonight!"

Wu Qian Qian's daily nightmare was Minister Chu's parting sentence just as he was getting ready to leave. He would say, "Elder martial sister, if you have free time, do go out and buy me a toy!"

Each time she heard this sentence, Wu Qian Qian would practically end up having spasms.

Amidst all these, the only thing she could be proud of was the following series of thoughts: "Have any of you witnessed King of Hell Chu laugh like an idiot while reading a book? I am the only one who has!"

"Have any of you witnessed King of Hell Chu looking at a girl's toy dreamily? I am also the only one!"

Even though Wu Qian Qian never once spoke those words, she did experience such moments where she imagined herself saying it out loud!

"Minister, someone wishes to see you!" Cheng Zi Ang's voice rang out. He sounded like he had just gotten his tooth extracted as it was not as loud as before.

They should have known that their Minister Chu was busy and not have asked such a question!

"Who? I am busy!" As MInister Chu was 'researching and studying hard', he did not have any patience at all.

"Sir, the people that came the other day!" Cheng Zi Ang's face was now as wrinkled as bitter gourd. If I could turn him down, I would have done it without a doubt. But… you simply can't turn this person down! He is from the Hei Mo clan and this person is a King level master!

"The people from the other day?" Chu Yang asked skeptically.

Suddenly, a cold voice rang out, "Minister Chu, you sure are a big person!"

Before he even spoke finish, a person in black had appeared at the doorway. His moment was extremely fast, just like that of ghosts and demons.

Chu Yang looked up immediately and exclaimed in surprise, "Haha, I thought it was someone else. It's you! Sir, please have a seat! Please have a seat! It's no wonder that a magpie was singing at the door early this morning; it's because of your impending arrival! Qian Qian, bring tea! The best one! Quickly get my best tea!"

Such intimate and lovely words made the Hei Mo Saber King feel as if he was meeting a family member that he had not seen in many years.

After he had finished talking, Minister Chu quickly moved from his sweet reading spot and stepped out to greet his guest.

The Hei Mo Saber King grunted and was just about to say something when he caught a glance of the children's book in King of Hell Chu's room that was flipped open by the wind.

This leader of Bu Tian Pavilion had obviously been reading a book called 'The Story of the Water Buffalo and the Mean Dog'. His eyes shifted to the desk and he saw many books that were of the same genre. There were 'The Secret of the Palace', 'The Love Story of the Three-headed Toad and the Two-legged Horse', as well as 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'!

The Saber King felt as if he was going insane. Within just a few short moments, he glared at Minister Chu with his two eyes. Goosebumps could be seen on the back of his hands!

Wu Qian Qian stood on the side with her head down in shame for her leader, while trying to suppress her laughter.

"Ah… Ahem! Cough, cough…" Minister Chu had become slightly ashamed and had to find a cover. He yelled out, "Qian Qian, are you not going to put your books away? How does it look upon us if our guest sees this?"

Subsequently, he turned and looked at the Hei Mo Saber King, "Funny! Cough, cough… All young ladies are like that! Haha…!"

Wu Qian Qian turned pale from anger. How did they become my books? If you wish to protect your dignity, the least you could do is to not frame me for your books! However, all she could do was to glare at King of Hell Chu angrily.

Even though this eldest miss was extremely annoyed, she did not dare to express it. Quietly, she swallowed her anger and pride as she began to put away 'her books'.

The Hei Mo Saber King's mouth became crooked as he sat down. At the back of his mind, he was silently cursing this shameless guy, "These books are clearly on your side. There is even one in your hand and you dare blame it on someone else's daughter!" Instead of saying this out loud, he laughed and replied, "It's nothing at all! All these little girls love books like these…"

When he said these words, the Saber King's face also turned red. Little girls were supposed to be seven to eight years old. The 'little girl' in front of him was 17 or 18 years old already!

However, he had come asking for a favor today, so he had to act courteously!

"Swoosh… Swoosh…" Wu Qian Qian quickly tossed the entire stack of books into a chest. She carried the chest towards Minister Chu and said begrudgingly, "Minister, sir, please give me the book in your hand. It's my book! Please return it to me! You have used it to fan yourself enough already!"

"Ahhh…" Chu Yang had finally realized that he was still holding onto a book in his hand and immediately tossed it into the chest that Wu Qian Qian was holding. He laughed loudly, "It's too hot in here!"

The Hei Mo Saber King's mouth twitched as he thought, "Motherf*cker! It's already the end of autumn. All the leaves have fallen and snow is about to come raining down, yet you are still fanning yourself. You must have really bad health!"