Hidden Shadow – CH 155

Chapter One-Hundred-Fifty-Five: The Taoist Priest

Sailing began.

The ship rocked slightly. Inside an ordinary cabin, a dozen black-clad men stood with their heads bowed. A woman in purple sat on a three-tiered couch. In the center of the couch was a carved low table, on which was a jade-white porcelain cup filled with amber-colored medicinal liquid, steaming gently.

Her slender, nail-painted fingers tapped the surface of the cup a few times. After a long while, she raised her red lips, picked up the cup, and took a small sip. The bitter taste spread in her mouth, so bitter that a sweetness arose from the back of her tongue. This wonderful flavor could not be matched by any amount of sugar, and those whose attention was completely consumed by bitterness would never have the chance to taste this beauty.

The woman slowly finished her medicine before the attendant dared to report, “Master, the Ghost Shadow who impersonated Cui Yichen is dead, killed by the Konghe Army.”

“That good-for-nothing only died now?” The woman wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, raising a slight brow. “So the Konghe Army is truly defunct now.”

She tucked the handkerchief into her sleeve. “Where’s the Madman?”

“In the lower deck, accompanied by Lu Danzhi,” The attendant immediately explained. “Lu Danzhi is also Cui Huya, the younger brother of Cui Huling. Years ago, for some unknown reason, he severed ties with the Cui family.”

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“Cui Huya’s talent is worlds apart from his brother’s, but he is proficient in extraordinary skills.” The woman gently stroked her red fingernails, murmuring, “So, there’s one who slipped through the net.”

“Master, there’s also news about the Lou and Mei families.” The attendant, head bowed, paused, and, not hearing what she said, continued, “The Lou family’s originally designated future head, Lou Mingyue, joined the Konghe Army, and the position of family head fell to Lou Xiaowu. The new head of the Mei family is Mei Zhengjing, and the Mei family has been rebuilt in Bianjing City. Ghost Shadow asked Master whether to completely eliminate them.”

“No need,” The woman said calmly.

The attendant was astonished. This was so unlike her master’s usual style; she was always ruthless and would not suddenly show mercy and leave a lineage for several Konghe families.

“Is there any news about Elder Zhi of the Mei family?” she asked.

“Elder Zhi has not been released yet,” the attendant replied.

“Hmph, you old fox, let’s see how long you can hide.” The woman’s fingers gently stroked the porcelain cup, her pressure increasing until the cup made a clicking sound before she released her grip.

A slight smile played on her lips. “Have Wei Yu find a way to make a deal with the Song Emperor: exchange Master Chuyun’s whereabouts for Elder Zhi.”

Legend had it that Master Chuyun was an immortal, wandering the world, often cultivating and comprehending the Dao atop high mountains and above seas of clouds. The Emperor had sent people several times to search for his traces, but all had returned empty-handed. Master Chuyun was once merely the abbot of a small Daoist temple, his reputation unremarkable. However, five years ago, during a great famine in Lizhou, he displayed his supernatural powers, first conjuring a valley mountain out of thin air, then bestowing rain and clouds to alleviate the drought in Lizhou.

On another occasion, while passing through Jiangning Prefecture, he divined that a village near the river would be destroyed and informed the prefect of Jiangning of this.

At that time, Jiangning was in the midst of the plum rain season, and the village was located right next to the dike. The prefect immediately thought of a “dike breach” and broke out in a cold sweat. Jiangning had just repaired the dikes at the end of the year, so even with heavy rainfall, a breach was unlikely. However, if the dike were to breach, the entire Jiangning prefecture would be affected. Therefore, the prefect, assuming it was better to be safe than sorry, personally led a team to investigate. To his astonishment, the dike was indeed on the verge of collapse. The river water had already overflowed, and everyone watched helplessly as the dike was about to burst. The prefect immediately evacuated the nearby villagers. Although the dike did eventually breach, due to the early preparations, the casualties were relatively small.

Afterwards, the villagers along the riverbank wanted to build a shrine for Master Chuyun, but he refused. Master Chuyun said that he had revealed heavenly secrets and deserved divine punishment, not merit.

From then on, Master Chuyun disappeared without a trace, and his story was passed down by word of mouth, becoming increasingly fantastical.

The woman in purple stood up, straightened her clothes, and suddenly smiled, her beauty as radiant as a spring flower, as if she had thought of something delightful. “I am going for a walk. Do not follow me.”

“Yes.” Absolute obedience was shown; no one dared to dissuade her, nor did they need to.

This woman, though young, knew exactly what she should and should not do. Like this trip to the Song Dynasty, she had already made preparations. Her plans against the Song Dynasty were already laid out more than a decade into the future. As long as she did not give the order to stop, Ghost Shadow would continue its operations, even after her death.

The boat had been sailing for three hours, and dusk had fallen.

An Jiu sensed that there were many highly skilled martial artists on board, so she and Chu Dingjiang did not stay quietly in the room, observing the situation.

Because the imperial court had certain controls on weapons, especially in Bianjing, martial arts practitioners who always carried weapons would definitely not flock to the capital. The guards of high-ranking officials and nobles in the city were generally below the fourth rank, while the most skilled martial artists were mostly in the Konghe Army. The sudden appearance of so many level seven or eight experts on this ship was definitely unusual.

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During dinner, the two went out together.

Making a fire on the ship was inconvenient, and the supply was limited, so the boatman did not provide hot food for passengers in the lower decks. Those who could afford cabins usually brought maids or servants, and the boatman prepared meals for each cabin, waiting for them to collect them.