According to the booklet of the Curtain Rollers, Jing Jiu was ranked seventeenth in the chess tournament, and Tong Yan was ranked first. It was believed that the odds of those private bets were about the same.
If Jing Jiu could win first place in the chess tournament, and he could do it, he would be able to earn a lot of money.
Though he could give this family a box of golden leaves, it was not as good as doing it this way.
It was reasonable for the Jing family to bet on their own son.
It depended on whether this family would believe his claim and bet a large amount of money on his winning, or in other words, foolishly.
…
…
Chaotian was very vast, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was concentrated in the middle of the land, which looked like a green phoenix. The Center State, where Zhaoge City was located, was the head of the green phoenix. The amount and density of the spiritual energy there was unparalleled. The wings of the green phoenix covered the area of Aoyama, where the density of the spiritual energy was lower, but purer.
Until now, the Cultivation circle still couldn't tell which of the two places was more suitable for Cultivation. However, the density of the spiritual energy was more important for the fetuses who breathed the energy of heaven and earth in their mothers' wombs. For this reason, the Center State had always been full of talents, which led to the Zhongzhou School becoming the number one sect.
The Aoyama Sect was located in the southern land, so they wouldn't miss the opportunity to recruit disciples around Zhaoge City. Among the dozens of disciples of Aoyama who came to participate in the Plum Meeting and the ceremony, there were a few from Zhaoge City. Zhao Layue was a typical successful case, and also the biggest regret of the Zhongzhou School in recent years.
After coming to Zhaoge City, Zhao Layue didn't have to live in the Immortal House.
After receiving the letter, she informed her family and put on the conical hat. She came to an alley not far from Taichang Temple in the fine rain after passing through it.
The wooden door opened with a faint sound, and the eldest daughter-in-law of the Jing family welcomed her warmly.
Standing in the middle of the courtyard, Zhao Layue looked around, feeling something wrong with the atmosphere.
This was indeed the home of the Jing family, but it was unlikely that such a family could raise someone like Jing Jiu.
However, when the Cultivation practitioners returned to their homes in the mortal world, they would feel uncomfortable, and the uncomfortable feeling wouldn't disappear until their relatives in the mortal world grew old and disappeared.
At that moment, the Cultivation practitioners could be considered to have embarked on their own path.
Zhao Layue didn't think too much about it, thinking that her feeling came from the classic question of the Cultivation circle. Soon, she got a completely different answer from Jing Jiu.
"They are not my real family. My identity and background are all fake."
Jing Jiu didn't intend to hide it from her when he invited her here.
"And then?" asked Zhao Layue, startled.
Asked Zhao Zhao, "And?"
Looking at her messy hair, it was obvious that no one had taken care of it. "Where are the maids?" he asked.
"I'm not used to being.
Zhao Layue rubbed her head carelessly, making her hair even messier.
Shaking his head, Jing Jiu took out the wooden comb and handed it over.
Zhao Layue took the comb and combed it twice, her black hair instantly becoming soft and smooth. "This comb is really useful," she said.
"I went to see the Curtain Rollers last night," said Zhao Layue, her eyes sharpening.
The expression in Zhao Layue's eyes grew sharp, asking, "And?"
"No, I just wanted to tell you," said Jing Jiu.
"When will you tell me your real identity?" asked Zhao Layue.
"In the future," said Jing Jiu.
"Why have you been avoiding Nan Wang?" asked Zhao Layue.
Nan Wang was the real name of the peak master of Qingrong.
"In the future," said Jing Jiu after a moment of silence.
"Never" and "in the future" were the two most frequently used words in this conversation.
Zhao Layue was a bit annoyed, asking, "Why did you call me here then?"
"I want to tell you another secret."
Jing Jiu continued, "This small courtyard was arranged by Duke Lu. You can contact him here."
After a moment of silence, Zhao Layue asked, "Is this the arrangement of Senior Grandmaster Jingyang before his ascension?"
Hearing the name Jingyang, Jing Jiu could keep his composure, saying, "He was worried that something might go wrong, so he had some backup plans, including this courtyard, and you … and me."
After another moment of silence, Zhao Layue said, "I don't understand why Senior Grandmaster insisted on ascending if he had sensed something was wrong in advance."
Jing Jiu said after a moment of silence, "The temptation of ascension might be too hard to bear."
"Duke Lu is very popular in the imperial court. Can he be trusted?" asked Zhao Layue.
Jing Jiu took out the wooden board and handed it to her, saying, "Yes. If something happens to you or your family in Zhaoge City, you can come here to find him with this wooden board. The mechanism is on the green stone by the door. I've made a hidden mark of the Shenmo Peak. You can find it by using your Piercing Discernment."
Zhao Layue said, "You have given me the Thoughtless Sword and the wooden board. What else do you have?"
"I'm too lazy to deal with these things," said Jing Jiu, "so I let you take the lead."
"Like climbing the Shenmo Peak?" asked Zhao Layue.
"Yes," said Jing Jiu.
Zhao Layue took the wooden board after some thought, saying, "Okay. If I can't walk anymore, remember to take me with you."
"For sure," said Jing Jiu.
"The Shui Yue Nunnery sent a mysterious female disciple named Guo Dong to this Plum Meeting. Nobody has ever seen her before. It's said that she is the personal disciple of Lian Sanyue."
Zhao Layue said all of a sudden.
Jing Jiu didn't understand why she seemed to care about this matter so much, as she had never cared about this kind of thing.
"I heard that the relationship between Senior Grandmaster and Lian Sanyue was problematic. How many times did they fight? "
She stared into Jing Jiu's eyes as she said this.
Jing Jiu said after some thought, "The relationship between the two of them … is indeed problematic, and they did fight."
Zhao Layue said, "If so, as the personal disciple of Senior Grandmaster, how can I lose to the personal disciple of Lian Sanyue?"
Noticing the eagerness in her eyes, Jing Jiu realized that she was serious, feeling a bit helpless.
"The women of Shui Yue Nunnery are always beautiful, and they are even more famous than those of Qingrong Peak."
Zhao Layue suddenly felt that her hair was a bit short, and her eyebrows were a bit thick.
She walked to the front of the mirror and looked at herself for a while. "Do I look better this way?" she asked while covering her thick eyebrows with both of her forefingers.
Jing Jiu walked behind her and rubbed her hair, saying with a smile, "You look so adorable."
Zhao Layue was a bit annoyed, but she didn't say anything.
Jing Jiu continued, "There's no need to compare. You don't know how to play zither anyway."
The Plum Meeting would begin the next day.
The zither, chess, calligraphy and painting were the first event.
The disciples of Shui Yue Nunnery were the best at playing the zither. It was the Immortal Master Mo who won first place in the zither at the Four-Seas Banquet. The personal disciple of Lian Sanyue must be better at playing the zither.
Staring at Jing Jiu in the mirror, Zhao Layue remarked, "Do you have a death wish?"
…
…
The security in Zhaoge City had always been excellent. Countless magic guards and swordsmen of the Imperial Court were stationed here, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth gathered here was enough to kill a swordsman in the State of Broken Sea. As a result, the Cultivation practitioners of various sects didn't dare make trouble here, to say nothing of those thieves and robbers.
According to the previous rules, the Cultivation practitioners were forbidden to fly into the city unless the Imperial Court issued a special decree. However, the ban was temporarily lifted because of the Plum Meeting. The populace in the city could see the sword lights or the magic treasures flashing in the blue sky from time to time, causing a great deal of cheers and discussions.
Of course, many scholars in the streets and alleys were waving their arms excitedly, telling the populace that the unusual phenomenon in the sky was merely a trick played by the Imperial Court, that there were no Cultivation practitioners in the world, and that there were no snow-eating monsters in the north. The purpose of all this was to provide more money for the Pure Heaven Bureau and the Northern Army, and the money was in the hands of the officials. For instance, the large amount of money spent on this year's Plum Meeting actually went to the Royal Concubine Hu in the Imperial Palace. She gave the money to a monk. If you don't believe me, why didn't I see a fairy swordsman flying over here and beheading himself with a white light?
It was because this was Zhaoge City, where the Cultivation practitioners wouldn't kill people randomly, and no Cultivation practitioner was willing to pay attention to these crazy scholars. The Imperial Court was busy as well, and the Pure Heaven Bureau was even busier. There were more than one thousand representatives of various sects participating in the Plum Meeting, and the registration, accommodation, and arrangements were piling up like a mountain. Moreover, the Plum Meeting officially began today, and the officials had all gone to the Plum Garden. The officials had many things to report to others, so they were running around like headless flies. The flying carriages rose and landed from time to time, and the self-propelled wooden chairs developed by Lumen were running amok in the courtyards of the government offices.
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